SUMMARY

As many as 476,000 people in the U.S. contract Lyme disease each year, according to the CDC. For most people, symptoms go away after two to four weeks of antibiotics, but five to 10 percent of patients have debilitating, long-term symptoms. To discuss, Ali Rogin is joined by Lindsay Keys, who’s been battling the disease for years, all while advocating for more awareness and research.

View the transcript of the story.

News alternative: Check out recent segments from the NewsHour, and choose the story you’re most interested in watching. You can make a Google doc copy of discussion questions that work for any of the stories here.

WARM-UP QUESTIONS

1. Who is Lindsay Keys, and what is her background?
2. What is Lyme disease and how many people in the U.S. contract it each year?
3. When did Keys start developing symptoms of chronic Lyme disease?
4. Why doesn't the CDC recognize chronic Lyme disease?
5. How are researchers starting to treat chronic Lyme disease?

FOCUS QUESTIONS

1. Why do you think the medical community has had such difficulty understanding and treating chronic Lyme disease?
2. How do you think the medical establishment could change to better treat diseases that don't have a clearly identifiable cause?

Media literacy: Who else would you want to hear from to better understand chronic Lyme disease and why it's becoming more common?

Alternative: See, Think, Wonder: What did you notice? What did the story make you think? What would you want to learn more about?

FOR MORE

What students can do: Want to learn more about the ways diseases like Lyme disease are researched and treated?

Interested in thinking through your own solutions to problems, including issues around health and healthcare?

Check out this lesson on Lyme disease and mice, and take a look at other Classroom's invention education lessons and activities to learn more about ways you can get involved with solving problems large and small.

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