Which Lyme disease stage is associated with disseminated infection?

• A. Early
• B. Acute disseminated infection
• C. Late
• D. Chronic

Answer: (B)

Dissemination means the infection has spread from the original bite via the bloodstream to other tissues. This spread marks the early disseminated stage of Lyme disease, which typically occurs days to weeks after the bite. In this stage you may see multiple erythema migrans lesions, plus neurologic involvement such as facial nerve palsy or meningitis, and sometimes carditis with heart block. These findings reflect hematogenous spread beyond the initial local skin lesion. By contrast, late manifestations (like migratory or persistent arthritis) and chronic neurologic involvement occur after longer periods and are not the disseminated stage. So the stage associated with dissemination is acute disseminated infection.