YOU CAN’T COUNT ON TESTING OF ENGORGED TICKS
A recent study published in the Journal of Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases examined the prevalence of ticks in the Quebec region, along with the frequency of Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb) infection in engorged versus non-engorged ticks.
by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH
Gasmi and colleagues found that you cannot always rely on the testing of engorged ticks to help determine possible exposure to Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb), the causative agent of Lyme disease. The Quebec study, “Analysis of the human population bitten by Ixodes scapularis ticks in Quebec, Canada: Increasing risk of Lyme disease,” analyzed 4,596 I. scapularis ticks removed from humans in Quebec between 2008 and 2014. [1]
Dear CanLyme,
Please tell me how I can obtain 50 copies of the CanLyme wallet card, “Bitten by a Tick?” This card measures 2 1/4″ x 3 1/2″ (or, 5 3/4 cm x 8 3/4 cm). On one side are instructions for removing an attached tick, and on the other are actual size pictures of larval, nymph and adult black legged ticks , plus ways to reduce your exposure to ticks, and what you should ask your doctor, about ticks and Lyme disease. Thank you,
I tried to locate this information and have been unable to confirm it anywhere else. I usually don’t usually comment on posts but would like more information to confirm that this was really the conclusion that they had come to. I was bitten by 2 black legged nymph ticks that I had tested and the report came back that the ticks had fed for 49 hours each and they were negative for lymes. Within a few days of there removal I began having flu like symptoms, neck pain, jaw cramping issues and low grade fevers that go up and down making me feel flushed a lot. I was put on doxycycline 2x a day for 21 days by a clinic doctor. I am on day 7 of the meds and was considered going off because the ticks tested negative. Because of this article I am rethinking that decision and considering taking the doxycycline till the end. The area of PA in the USA where i got the tick has one of the highest rates of lyme infected ticks. Also we sent 3 ticks in from my grandchildren that were taken off the same day but had all fed 12 hrs or less and had all tested positive for lymes. Please send me a link or other possible places where I can verify this information. Thank you.