The major impact of TBDs on the general public in Europe and
North America first became evident with the detection of Borrelia
burgdorferi as the causative agent of Lyme disease (LD)) in the
1980s (Burgdorfer et al., 1982; Granström, 1997) and the recognition
of its medical significance, wide distribution and high prevalence
(O’Connell et al., 1998; Sood, 2002).