Acute urinary retention (AUR) in females is a rare condition (annual incidence 3-7/100,000/year). In the past AUR was considered to be of psychogenic origin. Today diagnostic tools have improved and aetiologic factors for AUR are more easily diagnosed and managed. Causes of AUR can be of infectious, pharmacological, neurological, anatomical, myopathic and functional origin. We report a case of a woman aged 34 who presented with AUR caused by Lyme borreliosis. The patient fully recovered after intravenous antibiotic treatment and micturition returned to the habitual condition.