Lyme disease threat to family members 'cannot be ruled out'

She made her comments following claims by Phones4U tycoon John Caudwell that his ex-wife and three children contracted the disease from him.

He believes the disease must have been passed on through the womb as his children, who he has not lived with for many years following his divorce form their mother, have been tested positive.

Ms Huyshe-Shires said: “Scientists have tried animal studies and failed to prove transmission by anything other than a tick. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen. It is an uncertainty. You can’t rule it out completely but you can’t prove it,.

“The thing that has been shown is transmission from a mother to her foetus, which results in stillbirth. They have run autopsies on stillborn babies and found borrelia bacteria, so it seems likely that caused the stillbirth.

“There are no proven examples of Lyme being passed from a mother to a surviving child. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen. It cannot be ruled out but it is thought to be extremely unlikely.”

Adelle Huckins, 35, from New Marske, North Yorkshire, who has been diagnosed with the condition, believes her husband and three children have contracted it from her.

Her 10-year-old daughter Kaitlyn has tested positive for the disease and she said her husband and other two children are showing symptoms. They are still waiting for the results of hospital tests.

The bacterial infection is spread by ticks and has increased in Scotland 1000 per cent over the past decade. Lyme disease can affect organs such as the heart and brain, resulting in long-term ill health, affecting vision and mobility and often does undiagnosed.

There were 228 confirmed cases in Scotland in 2009, according to official figures. Some cases can be relatively mild with symptoms no more serious than a flu-like illness that is treated with antibiotics. It can be passed by a pregnant woman to her unborn child and it has been suggested that a breastfeeding mother can pass it to her baby.

In 2013 it was linked to the death of Scott Beattie, 43, a gamekeeper from Glenglass, near Evanton, Ross-shire.

Not all patients develop the characteristic “bullseye” rash on the side of a bite, and a blood test can be inconclusive with symptoms varying from patient to patient, sometimes mimicking other illnesses such as multiple sclerosis and chronic fatigue syndrome.

Mrs Huckins believes she caught Lyme disease during a school trip to Germany in 1991. She was bitten by a tick and became ill with stomach cramps and developed a rash synonymous with the disease.

The NHS struggled to offer a diagnosis and Lyme disease was only confirmed four years ago by a specialist lab in the US.

She describes the poor health of her husband and three children are “all textbook Lyme”.

“To pinpoint Lyme disease before my diagnosis would have been tricky. It is a mimicking disease with co-infections,” she said.

Meanwhile, a Scot with Lyme disease, who said he had to go to the US and Germany for diagnosis, is convinced the condition can be passed on to other family members.

Thomas O'Grady, 54, from Drymen, said: "I have just returned from Ireland where I have a friend whose wife has had Lyme disease for more than 25 years. She contracted it in the US. Their two children suffered from Lyme disease, and they believe it is congenital and was passed on in the womb

"There is so much misunderstanding about Lyme disease. Along with its co-infections, it is definitely something that is passed on from mother to babies. It can also be contracted sexually. There is a mountain of evidence out there."

He said more has to be done to alert the public in Scotland about the dangers of Lyme disease.

"We live on the route of the West Highland Way, we are an incubator for Lyme disease."

Singer Avril Lavigne, writers Amy Tan and Alice Walker and model Christie Brinkley have all been affected by the illness.