Question

Robert, a middle-aged man living in Connecticut, decides to visit his physician because he has been experiencing general malaise and arthralgia in his large joints. Although he does not remember any tick bites or developing a "bull's-eye" rash, Robert's doctor feels he is experiencing a the second stage of the systemic bacterial disease known as________.

Choose one:
A. Lyme disease
B. brucellosis
C. tularemia
D. bubonic plague

Answer 1

The symptoms described are consistent with the second stage of Lyme disease, caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi.

Step-by-step explanation:

The symptoms described in the question, including general malaise and arthralgia in large joints, are consistent with the second stage of Lyme disease. Lyme disease is a systemic bacterial disease caused by the spirochete bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi. The characteristic bull's-eye rash, called erythema migrans, may or may not be present, but other symptoms such as flu-like symptoms and joint pain can occur.