Indiana Has Many Ticks That May Carry Lyme Disease

The university’s Project Vector Shield, which launched in April, found the disease-carrying ticks in the vast majority of the 20 sites assessed, the Indianapolis Star reported.

Lyme disease is often called the “great imitator”.

He said the new findings, published May 24 in the Journal of Medical Entomology, offer more support for the tick-fighting garments.

“What the statistics have shown over the years is an increase in Lyme Disease transmission”, McLean says.

Forecasting the seasonal population of ticks is a slippery practice.

Anyone anxious about the bites should circle the calendar date and note where on the body the tick was removed, Fermon said.

When it comes to getting rid of ticks, time is of the essence. Stick some adult ticks on a pair of regular trousers tilted at a 45-degree angle, and 100 percent of them will still be clinging on 5 minutes later.

“NO! This can actually make matters worse”.

Treat as soon as possible: If a tick attaches to you for more than 36 hours, and you visit a health care provider soon after, they can prescribe a single dose of doxycycline, preventing the infection from developing, according to Daly.

MYTH: All ticks actively search for hosts. The CDC said nine new germs spread by mosquitoes and ticks were reported during this 13-year period. More worrisome are surges in deadly diseases spread by ticks, such as Rocky Mountain spotted fever, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, and babesiosis.

Avoid walking in scrubby areas with shrubs, bushes, high grass, and leaf litter, where ticks abound.

The best way avoid a tick-borne infection is not to get bitten in the first place by always using an effective insect repellent.

“This is common assumption, but not necessarily true”. Field-collected, deer tick nymphs, however, displayed a different pattern. The other issue is their size. Ticks tend to latch onto warm parts of the body like the underarms, groin, hairline, back, etc. Contact your doctor if there are concerns about incomplete tick removal or if a rash or flu-like symptoms develop. But, immune responses can vary.

MYTH: If the test is negative, you don’t have Lyme disease.

To prevent contact with ticks and avoid tick-borne illnesses, Fermon recommends tips provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Elumir says since the winter has ended, people across Alberta have started submitting ticks if they discover them on themselves or their pets.

Her story is similar to many others. “When in high risk areas check yourself often, initial tick contact nearly always occurs below your thigh”.

“If you’ve been bitten, don’t panic, promptly and carefully remove the tick and save it”. Once a tick gets on the skin, it generally climbs upward until it reaches a protected area. “Bi-annual serosurveys (spring and fall) that were conducted on Block Island found that Lyme disease prevalence fluctuated between 8.4 percent and 29.1 percent and human babesiosis have fluctuated between 0.5 percent and 10 percent”. And never use petroleum jelly or a hot match to kill and remove a tick.