By Marlene Cimons / Published Spring 2021
Long before the COVID-19 pandemic prompted a surge in telemedicine, John Aucott s patients would text
and email him photos of their rashes. My kids used to joke: Don t look at dad s phone because it s got pictures of people s body parts, Aucott says. Every time my phone pinged, it felt like
Groundhog Day because it was the same, over and over.
His phone is still pinging, but Aucott, director of the Johns Hopkins Lyme Disease Research Center, wants to see the photos because he knows that untreated Lyme disease can portend debilitating long-term medical consequences, including damage to the heart, joints, and nervous system.