A DEBILITATING disease that is on the rise in the United Kingdom was being discussed in York today by doctors and sufferers.

Lyme disease - contracted via a bacteria-infected tick - is widely publicised in the United States, where it affects hundreds of thousands of people each year, but it is virtually unknown in the UK.

According to the Health Protection Agency, the true number of cases in the UK is unknown, but it said that some reports put the figure at 50 cases a year in England and Wales - and rising.

However, many sufferers believe that the true number of infections is much higher.

Today's conference at York St John College, organised by the organisation Lyme Disease Action, aims to address that situation by bringing doctors and academics from across Europe and the United States together, to discuss the latest information.

Angela Howard, who suffered with Lyme disease and was at today's conference - the second of its kind in England - said the infection had a range of symptoms from a rash, fever and muscle aches to memory problems, dyslexia, arthritis, facial paralysis and heart problems.

Angela said: "I probably would have just lived with the condition if a friend of mine, who had seen posters about the disease in a doctor's surgery in America, had not said that I could have Lyme disease.

"I asked the doctor for a blood test and six weeks later my doctor rang me to say 'you've got Lyme disease, whatever that is.'

"It took me four years to get rid of it.

"Those doctors who know about Lyme often wrongly believe it is only found in the New Forest.

"Many are not aware that it is widespread in this country and there are some doctors who even believe that it does not exist in the UK. Lyme is difficult to diagnose and treat. This conference aims to give doctors in this country all the information about the disease, and, in turn, let the public know about the risks."

Updated: 08:49 Friday, June 20, 2003