Lyme Disease and the tick explosion

[Len and Jo]

PBS NewsHour had a very good program on the above subject last night.  Good for all those who like to spend time in the out of doors.

https://www.facebook.com/newshour/videos/10155594674848675/

[Molaker]

Oh, great.  Now it's exploding ticks.  What's next?

[Oldgator73]

Oh, great.  Now it's exploding ticks.  What's next?

Every time I venture out past the grass line on our property I bring some ticks back. I wish we had the exploding kind (as long as they don't explode on me).

[ArdraF]

There's also a somewhat new kind of tick disease which is relatively rare but which can be deadly.  If you have a tick bite and feel sick within 1-3 weeks go to the doctor because this is a bad one - as though the others weren't deadly enough!  You will need a blood test to verify the virus.  It is called Powassan Virus and it is named after the town of Powassan, Ontario, where it was identified in a young boy who eventually died from it.  Google Powassan Disease to learn more.

ArdraF

[Dragginourbedaround]

In the last month I've had three tick bites. One in FL and two in TN. By the time we got to Columbia, MO the third bite looked pretty angry, so I stopped iand saw a Dr and got a Rx for some Doxycycline. None of the bites displayed the bullseye that is associated with possible problems, but I thought it was time to be proactive.

[Len and Jo]

In the last month I've had three tick bites. One in FL and two in TN. By the time we got to Columbia, MO the third bite looked pretty angry, so I stopped iand saw a Dr and got a Rx for some Doxycycline. None of the bites displayed the bullseye that is associated with possible problems, but I thought it was time to be proactive.

In the PBS show I posted above the doctor states that not all tick bites associated with Lyme disease will show a bulls-eye.

We all should be proactive and know signs and infection stages.  We treat all of our exterior clothing (shirts, pants, socks, boots) with permethrin that we carry in our RV.  We use Sawyers permethrin to treat our clothing but now many clothing products can be bought with permethrin impregnation fabric ( Insect Shield Protective Clothing: L.L. Bean, REI, Gamehide, Sawyer, Columbia...) that supposedly lasts through 70 washings.

[ArdraF]

Gene, I think seeing a doctor was the smart thing to do.  I got a tick bite with a bullseye a couple of years ago in Virginia and was treated in Pennsylvania.  We had a friend who was bitten in Sonoma, California before Lyme Disease was thought about very much and she was in bad shape, going blind, etc.  This new one doesn't sound like it's even treatable which is scary, especially because it's carried by some of the same ticks that pass on Lyme Disease.

ArdraF