Abstract
Morgellons disease (MD) is a multi-system disorder characterized by multicolor filaments extruding out of the skin along with an array of dermatologic and neuropsychiatric symptoms. It was previously termed Delusional parasitosis. However, published scientific data found the association of MD symptoms with the systemic manifestations of Lyme disease, caused by Borrelia spirochete. In a retrospective study of 122 MD patients, skin specimens were examined and 96% of them showed Borrelia spirochete in their histology sample. Hence, this association suggests that spirochete infection could be a possible cause of chronic illness in MD patients, and this rejected the physician’s perception that MD lesions might be self-inflicted. A cohort study reported tick-borne co-infections among MD patients, which could also be an etiological factor for dermopathy in MD patients. Some literature also discussed neuropsychiatric manifestations like cognitive impairment, dementia anxiety, depression, paranoia, and sensory hallucinations in Lyme disease and associated tick-borne infection. The objectives of this review are to identify the differences in the past and current perception regarding the pathogenesis of MD and determine the associations of spirochetal and tick-borne diseases with MD and psychiatric illnesses. More than 50 new research articles and case reports were reviewed and only 31 articles were shortlisted and used as references. This review has a detailed discussion on Morgellons disease and its association with Spirochete infection.
Highlights
Morgellons disease (MD) is a multi-system disease characterized by the spontaneous appearance of slowly healing ulcerating skin lesions and having multicolored filaments embedded in the skin [1] [2] [3]
Published scientific data found the association of MD symptoms with the systemic manifestations of Lyme disease, caused by Borrelia spirochete
This lies in contrast to the spirochetes and dermal filaments observed in biopsy findings from MD patients, which further suggests that MD is not a delusional infestation
Summary
Morgellons disease (MD) is a multi-system disease characterized by the spontaneous appearance of slowly healing ulcerating skin lesions and having multicolored filaments embedded in the skin [1] [2] [3]. Delusional infestation (previously known as delusional parasitosis or Ekbom’s syndrome) is an uncommon disorder, characterized by a patient’s fixed belief of having skin infested by a small, living pathogen regardless of any relevant shreds of evidence being found by the medical community [5]. Statistics from the Morgellons Research Foundation have shown 50% of patients report disabling fatigue, problems with attention, fibromyalgia, joint pain, and sleep disturbance. Multiple studies published between 2013 and 2015 have shown histological observations and findings from electron microscope imaging that illustrates spirochetes and dermal filaments [7]. This evidence suggests that MD is a completely different entity from Delusional Infestations
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