Nova Scotia on the Map for Nation Wide Lyme Disease Study

The Canadian Lyme Disease Research Network (CLyDRN) has been granted funding by CIHR and Nova Scotia has a key role to play in curbing Lyme Disease.

“We would like to thank the Government of Canada for the opportunity to advance the science of Lyme disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. Our network, based at Queen’s University, will collaborate with patients and our many academic and government partners to protect the health of Canadians from coast to coast. We will provide the national capacity to have a coordinated, integrated and multidisciplinary response to the emerging infectious disease threat of Lyme disease.” Dr. Kieran Moore, Principal Investigator, Pan-Canadian Research Network on Lyme Disease

ClyDRN's goal is to build a national network on Lyme disease to facilitate and support national collaboration among Lyme disease stakeholders (researchers, clinicians and patients) in resource and knowledge sharing in order to:

• Mobilize, strengthen and build capacity in the Lyme disease research community.
• Develop innovative multidisciplinary curricula and training opportunities for students and professionals.
• Facilitate and support translation and dissemination of new knowledge from bench to bedside to population in order to:
•  improve clinical science and practice; 
•  foster policy changes, leading to transformative and measureable improvements in the development and implementation of evidence-informed practices, policies, services, products and programs;
•  improve patient outcomes, access to care and quality, efficiency and effectiveness of health care.
• Develop a national cohort of patients in order to better understand the association between serological and clinical phenomenology of Lyme disease on a longitudinal basis (including a biobank creation and maintenance).

Nova Scotia's south shore has been chosen as one of the sties that will recruit patients to participate in the network.  Working with front line clinicians in Lunenburg, Drs. Todd Hatchette and Shelly McNeil will coordinate the recruitment of patients and the establishment of a national biobank to better understand the impact of Lyme disease on Nova Scotain's and collect the samples needed to develop new diagnostic tests. Other members of the Network from Nova Scotia include Dr. Lisa Barrett and Dr. John Frampton.  Nova Scotia will receive $340,000 from the $4 million total grant awarded to CLyDRN to support this research. 

Please join us in congratulating this research team on their success.