Latest news with #tickborneDiseases
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Health officials issue urgent warning after discovering first case of deadly bacteria carried by tick in US: 'Raising public awareness … is critical'
Researchers in Connecticut have identified a dangerous pathogen carried by a rapidly spreading, invasive species of tick, Patch reported. The Asian longhorned tick (Haemaphysalis longicornis) is considered invasive in the United States, with initial sightings recorded in 2010, 2013, and 2017. Many tick species pose a risk to human health because of their efficacy in spreading disease, particularly bloodborne illnesses such as Lyme disease, babesiosis, and ehrlichiosis. That third pathogen is the one found by the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station. According to NBC Connecticut, an Asian longhorned tick that tested positive for the bacterium responsible for ehrlichiosis "was found in Fairfield County sometime between 2021 and now." "This discovery highlights the growing threat posed by invasive ticks," CAES Passive Tick and Tick-Borne Disease Surveillance Program Director Goudarz Molaei said. "Raising public awareness of emerging tick-borne illnesses is critical to both human and veterinary health." Tickborne disease has been on the rise for decades. "As typically colder and drier climates become warmer and wetter, there has been an expansion of ticks in the northern hemisphere and at higher altitudes where they were previously unable to survive," a Pfizer advisory cautioned. Scientists say rising temperatures and volatile weather patterns are driving their incursions into new areas, as a study published in Scientific Reports in January evidenced. Because the Asian longhorned tick is a relative newcomer to the U.S., researchers are still working to determine the gravity of the risk it poses to both humans and animals. Researcher Risa Pesapane co-authored a paper about the species and its effect on livestock, citing the deaths of three head of cattle in Oklahoma in 2021. Do you worry about getting diseases from bug bites? Absolutely Only when I'm camping or hiking Not really Never Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. "To have been taken down by exsanguination by ticks, you can imagine that was tens of thousands of ticks on one animal," she explained. At first glance, the worrisome proliferation of disease-spreading ticks seems insurmountable — but there are ways to reduce your risk of tick encounters and tick-related illnesses. Chemical-free pest control methods are one way to avoid tick bites, and the Global Lyme Alliance recommends "products that use picaridin and oil of lemon eucalyptus" as effective deterrents on par with chemical pesticides. Surprisingly, rewilding your yard may be another way to reduce the risk of encountering ticks, according to the David Suzuki Foundation. "A growing body of ecological evidence … shows that replacing lawns with native plant gardens can disrupt tick-host interactions and reduce tick-borne disease risk, while also restoring biodiversity," the Foundation wrote. Pesapane urged a multifaceted strategy for tick mitigation. "For a variety of reasons, I tell people you cannot spray your way out of an Asian longhorned tick infestation — it will require an integrated approach," she explained. Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the latest innovations improving our lives and shaping our future, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Alpha Gal Syndrome on the rise in the Mountain State
GHENT, WV (WVNS) — A different kind of tickborne disease is on the rise in West Virginia. Alpha Gal Syndrome cases are becoming more and more common as awareness spreads and people begin to get the proper diagnosis. Snake season: What to do if you find a snake in your yard There are a variety of tickborne diseases that affect people in the Mountain State, and you have probably heard of most of them. One of the most common is Lyme disease, which is spread by deer ticks. However, one you may not know much about, although it can have lifelong consequences, is Alpha Gal Syndrome. Dr. Zonaira Gul, an Infectious Disease Consultant for Beckley Appalachian Regional Healthcare, said Alpha Gal Syndrome is spread by a specific molecule. 'It's not found in primates, like humans and chimpanzees. So, when mammals, when the tick transmits this molecule to human beings and the human beings, you know, the people eat red meat, suppose at dinner time people eat red meat, and after a few hours, they start to develop allergic reaction,' said Dr. Gul. Dr. Gul said unlike a typical food allergy, the Alpha Gal reaction can take a few hours to show symptoms. But when it does, the symptoms are similar to a normal food allergy. You will experience itching, rashes, nausea, and in severe cases, shortness of breath. Dr. Gul said the allergy does not just extend to beef, the most commonly thought of red meat, either. 'Unfortunately, people who have, who eventually develop this allergy, they are advised to completely avoid meat, red meat. From beef, you know, avoid beef, lamb, pork meat, and products actually acquired from these mammals, so like, milk.' said Dr. Gul. Dr. Gul said gelatin is another product to be avoided if the reaction is especially severe. Spotted lanternflies are in West Virginia: What to know She said prevention is the only way to avoid Alpha Gal Syndrome as currently there is no cure for this disease. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CBC
23-05-2025
- Health
- CBC
Q&A: N.S. has the most ticks in Canada — here's how to protect yourself
Social Sharing The Nova Scotia government recently put out a reminder for people to protect themselves against tick-borne diseases, saying tick populations are growing in every part of the province — in both urban and rural areas. Vett Lloyd, a biology professor at Mount Allison University in Sackville, N.B., and the head of the Lloyd Tick Lab, shared tips with CBC Radio's Information Morning Nova Scotia on how to deal with the insect. This interview has been shortened for length and clarity. Does Nova Scotia have more ticks than usual this year? Unfortunately, yes we do. It was a good winter for ticks. It was a mild, long, cool fall [and] a long, cool spring — a perfect season for ticks. Unfortunately, people are finding them and when we go out, we're finding huge numbers of ticks too. Congratulations to all of Nova Scotia. You win not only the regional contest for who has the most ticks, but nationally. New Brunswick is following behind. P.E.I. is getting a steadily increasing number of ticks. The thing is, once a female tick grabs a blood meal in the fall she will then be able to lay about 2,000 to 3,000 eggs. Their populations can increase really quickly. How is this information tracked? They're not being tracked in a national way, so they're tracked by proxy — so how many people submit pictures of ticks to the government tick-tracking site, eTick. We monitor them indirectly by the number of people who send them in to get tested. And obviously we're only encountering a small number of ticks and some people who are just used to them just kill them and get rid of them. Lyme disease is the main concern with ticks, but we've seen other pathogens that are showing up in recent years. How much of a concern is anaplasmosis? Veterinarians have been monitoring anaplasmosis for the past 10 years or so and they've seen it increase in frequency and also — along with the ticks — spreading northward. Anaplasmosis is a scary disease. If you get sick from it, you get very, very sick and you end up in the [emergency room]. If you're lucky, your ER doctor will realize quickly the fact that you've run out of blood cells. It does respond to treatment, as long as you get treatment. Is anaplasmosis potentially fatal? Yes. Can you get multiple kinds of illnesses from ticks? Can you get anaplasmosis and Lyme disease? Unfortunately, ticks are basically crawly bags of pathogens, so they will frequently have more than one pathogen and they can pass it on, which means that you just get extra sick. It's not just Lyme disease and anaplasmosis. We're also worried about babesiosis, which is a type of parasite. Those are the big ones coming up in this region. It's grim, but at the same time, people need to get outside and enjoy the outside. Quivering inside isn't going to help. There's also pediatric Lyme arthritis. Last summer, a memo was sent by the provincial medical officer of health to health-care practitioners to look out for it. What do you know about that? In an older adult, you would expect arthritis. But if you have an eight-year-old or a 10-year-old suddenly developing arthritis — particularly if it's just in one knee, but not both knees — that memo served to alert physicians that they should think about Lyme disease in that case. So with more Lyme disease, it's showing up in kids. Kids are small, they run around outside and they emit a lot of carbon dioxide, so they're super attractive to ticks. If there's more ticks, are we more likely to see tick-borne illnesses? Unfortunately, yes. But we can modify that to some extent by people just becoming more alert about prevention and doing tick checks. We know they're attracted to moist, warm areas, so people need to check armpits, groins and all of that. How do we properly remove ticks? If you're coming in from outside, do a tick check. That's a really good line of defence. Before you go outside, there are prevention things you can do. There are really good tools for dogs, various tick repellents and things that kill the ticks before the ticks feed long enough to give disease. There are also Lyme vaccines for dogs. For humans, the idea is that we have less hair so we're better at finding ticks [on ourselves]. From the ticks perspective, we don't smell as good [as dogs]. The tick sprays, bug sprays that say they're good for ticks, are generally a good idea. If you're in a high-risk area, you can get clothing that has a repellent in it — commercial or you can make it yourself. When you come in, do a tick check. Strip down. Yes, check moist areas, but if your tick is hungry it could be anywhere. You're looking for freckles with legs. Freckles are not supposed to have legs. If they do, get it off you. There is a lot of mythology about how you remove ticks. Getting it off you is the main point. The bit that will be left embedded in your skin is the mouth part, which is not actually a risk to you. You don't want to squish the tick gut contents back into your bloodstream and you don't want to smear it on cuts.
Washington Post
08-05-2025
- Health
- Washington Post
Here's a smart way to fight ticks, according to a tick expert
There are a number of steps you can take to protect yourself from ticks when you are in nature, but there is one you should take: Spray your footwear with the synthetic insecticide permethrin. Reports of tick-borne diseases, such as Lyme disease and alpha-gal syndrome, an immune reaction that can cause a red meat allergy, peak in June and July in the United States.
