Archive for the ‘Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever’ Category

Tick Season 2021: Why Researchers Are Focusing on Staten Island Backyards

https://www.silive.com/news/2021/06/tick-season-2021-heres-why-researchers-are-focusing-on-staten-island-backyards.html

Tick season 2021: Here’s why researchers are focusing on Staten Island backyards

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — For the last four years, researchers from Columbia University have been studying the rise in tick populations and Lyme disease on Staten Island — and the work continues this summer as they drag for ticks, set up hair traps and place trail cameras in residents’ backyards.

The researchers are studying both parks and residential areas to better understand the ecology of ticks and the risk of tick-transmitted diseases in urban environments. And ticks are now being found across all of Staten Island, not just in the southernmost parts.

Most notably, the Asian longhorned tick continues to spread across the borough.

(See link for article)

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**Comment**

For more on Diuk-Wasser’s work.

Category:

Anaplasmosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme, research, Rickettsia, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Ticks, Transmission

MN Toddler Hospitalized With RMSF

https://www.lymedisease.org/minnesota-toddler-tick-rmsf/

MN toddler hospitalized with tick-borne Rocky Mountain spotted fever

May 26, 2021

One-year-old Gino Pahl has been under sedation in the intensive care unit of a Minnesota hospital for the last week. He’s fighting Rocky Mountain spotted fever, an infection transmitted by a common wood tick.

“It’s so new a lot of the people we meet [at the hospital] say they have never seen a case here,” said Gino’s mother, Shelby Pahl.

The infection is most common across the central U.S. from the Carolinas to Kansas, but it is suspected Gino picked it up in a new development in Buffalo, which also happens to be his backyard.

Click below to watch the story, from KSTP-TV reporter Jessica Miles.

Click here for additional news coverage about this case.

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For more:

Another great example that ticks are in places they shouldn’t be spreading diseases they should have.  I predict we will only see more of this.  Doctors need to quit looking at entomology maps to diagnose people. Birds and other animals drop ticks everywhere.

Category:

Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Ticks

10 Top Causes of Symptoms in Chronic Lyme Disease

https://www.prohealth.com/library/ten-common-causes-of-symptoms-in-chronic-lyme-disease-8558

10 Top Causes Of Symptoms In Chronic Lyme Disease

By Connie Strasheim • ProHealth.com • September 22, 2020

(Please see link above for full article.  Excerpts below)

1) Mold toxicity

Real Time labs is among the most accurate of labs for mold testing. Effective mold toxin binders include the medication cholestyramine and activated charcoal.

2) Parasitic Infections

Parasitic infections are often not detectable on conventional lab tests, and may not even show up in sophisticated stool tests; therefore, using multiple forms of testing to detect parasites, such as electrodermal screening tools such as the Zyto or muscle testing, is important, along with lab testing with reputable labs such as Doctors’ Data.

3) Hormone and Neurotransmitter Imbalances

Replenishing the body’s stores of these chemicals can therefore profoundly support the healing process and Lyme doctors will commonly prescribe bio-identical hormones such as pregnenolone, DHEA and thyroid hormone to their patients, along with amino acids such as L-tyrosine, GABA and 5-HTP, which the body uses to make neurotransmitters. To make these amino acids work in the body, supplemental co-factors such as P5P, SAMe, and methyl B-12 are also sometimes important.

4) Vitamin and Mineral Deficiencies

Common deficiencies include magnesium, Vitamins D, C and B-vitamins; zinc and iron—among others. Supplementation with these nutrients can help to support the body during healing. (For more information on common nutritional deficiencies in Lyme disease and supplements that support the body, I encourage you to check out my 2012 book Beyond Lyme Disease).

5) Inflammation

Reducing inflammation involves mitigating all of its causes, such as removing pathogens and toxins from the body, and downregulating the immune response with nutrients and tools such as low-dose immunotherapy. High-quality, natural anti-inflammatory substances such as curcumin may also be helpful for supporting the body’s inflammatory response.

6) Mitochondrial Dysfunction

Supporting the mitochondria with supplements such as L-carnitine and CO Q-10 can help to mitigate fatigue and other symptoms related to mitochondrial dysfunction.

7) Emotional Trauma

Many studies have proven that trauma suppresses immune function and when prolonged, can open the door to chronic health challenges.

8) A Poor Diet

Removing allergenic foods and consuming fresh, organic “real” food, such as non-GMO, antibiotic, pesticide, and hormone-free meats, poultry, eggs, and other proteins; non-starchy veggies and low-glycemic fruits, along with healthy fats such as olive and coconut oil, can help to alleviate symptoms caused by food.

9) Poor Gastrointestinal Function

Supplementing with GI nutrients such as hydrochloric acid, digestive enzymes and probiotics may help to support gastrointestinal function in those with Lyme.

10) Environmental Toxicity

Sauna therapy, rebounding, coffee enemas, liver cleanses, and taking toxin binders such as zeolite, chlorella, EDTA, activated charcoal—among others, are just a few ways to remove toxins from the body.  Ideally, you’ll want to work with a practitioner who can test your body for toxins and prescribe a regimen in conjunction with Lyme disease treatment based on your needs. The same holds for the other causes of symptoms described here.

This article was first published on ProHealth.com on April 26, 2016 and was updated on September 22, 2020.

Connie Strasheim is the author of multiple wellness books, including three on Lyme disease. She is also a medical copywriter, editor and healing prayer minister. Her passion is to help people with complex chronic illnesses find freedom from disease and soul-spirit sickness using whole body medicine and prayer, and she collaborates with some of the world’s best integrative doctors to do this. In addition to Lyme disease, Connie’s books focus on cancer, nutrition, detoxification and spiritual healing. You can learn more about her work at: ConnieStrasheim.

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**Comment**

Not mentioned is Lyme itself, and the many other potential players.  While parasites apart from Lyme is mentioned, dealing with the infections is paramount.  Of course these infections are indirectly affected by the things listed in the helpful article, but never underestimate the infection(s) themselves.  Good, effective, savvy treatment is required.

For more:

Category:

Anaplasmosis, Babesia, Bartonella, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme, Mold, Mycoplasma, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever

Rabies & Heartworm & Ticks – Oh My!

https://www.chicoer.com/2021/01/14/rabies-and-heartworm-and-ticks-oh-my-caseys-corner/

Rabies and heartworm and ticks — oh my! | Casey’s Corner

By | Correspondent

Back in the “old days,” most dog owners could do very little to prevent diseases in their furry companions. Today, we have dozens of options that can prevent a battery of nasty diseases in our four-legged friends — but the top three are tick-borne illnesses, rabies and heartworm.

Tick-borne diseases

Every year, thousands of dogs are infected with serious illnesses spread by a tiny insect that can be found everywhere from the deepest backwoods to the most pristine urban parks: the tick.

Ticks — which most medical experts agree need to be embedded for 24 to 48 hours to spread infections — attach themselves to dogs, feed on blood and transmit diseases directly into the bloodstream.

Both prescription and over-the-counter products can keep ticks from attaching most of the time, but the best preventative is to check your dog daily if you live in a tick-prone region, and remove and destroy any ticks you find.

Major canine tick-borne diseases include:

  • Lyme disease. The tiny (barely the size of a sesame seed) Western black-legged tick or deer tick — found in 56 of California’s 58 counties — is the main vector for this serious bacterial infection. It can cause stiffness, lameness, swollen joints, loss of appetite, fever and fatigue.
  • Ehrlichiosis. Caused by the brown dog tick, this is one of the most common and dangerous tick-borne diseases infecting dogs; symptoms include fever, loss of appetite, weight loss, runny eyes and nose, and swollen limbs. In its acute stage, ehrlichiosis can be fatal.
  • Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. The American dog tick, the wood tick, and the lone star tick carry this disease, which causes fever, stiffness, skin lesions and neurological problems. Serious cases can result in death. (See link for article)

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**Comment**

Again, minimum tick attachment time for transmission has never been studied. Prudence would err on the side of caution.  We also know that partially fed ticks can transmit pathogens more quickly:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/07/05/interrupted-blood-feeding-in-ticks-causes-and-consequences/  There’s also examples of humans becoming infected within a few hours of tick bite as well as the fact Rickettsia can be transmitted immediately and Powassan within minutes.  Many pathogens have been found in the salivary glands of ticks also suggesting quicker transmission.

For more:

Category:

Ehrlichiosis, Lyme, Prevention, Rickettsia, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Ticks

Lone Star Ticks Have Swarmed Aquinnah, Biologist Says

https://vineyardgazette.com/news/2020/10/07/lone-star-ticks-swarm-aquinnah

Tick biologist Richard Johnson said the best way to reduce the tick population is to reduce the deer population.  Credit: Tim Johnson

Lone Star Ticks Have Swarmed Aquinnah, Biologist Says

Aaron Wilson

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

Lone star ticks – and thousands of their larvae — have overrun the town of Aquinnah, biologist and tick expert Richard Johnson told Aquinnah selectmen at their meeting Wednesday, following reports that showed a high incidence of tick-borne disease in the town this year.

In a letter that went out last week, the town board of health reported 13 new cases of tick-borne illnesses since April of this year, including cases of Lyme disease, ehrlichiosis, babeosis and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. At the meeting, Mr. Johnson said he was in Aquinnah on Tuesday surveying yards for ticks and found lone star larvae in every location he visited.

(See link for article)

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**Comment**

OK – this here should alarm us – an entomologist getting a daily call from folks discovering clusters of lone star ticks.

Although not known to carry Lyme, they can cause ehrlichiosis, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, as well as a red meat and or dairy allergy.

“I hope this isn’t the new normal but I fear that they’re exploding in numbers.”  Richard Johnson

Johnson also points out that unlike deer ticks, lone star larvae stay in groups of 2,000-8,000 until they are nymphs which means those who brush up  against a cluster could have hundreds to thousands attaching simultaneously.

The article mentions controlled burns for changing the habitat which could eradicate the ticks.  Please see:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/07/18/frequent-prescribed-fires-can-reduce-risk-of-tick-borne-diseases  Burning works but it must be done repeatedly.

The article mentions using various birds to eat them, but the ticks also travel and feed on birds.

Johnson stated that the number one thing they can do is reduce the deer population.

Category:

Alpha Gal Meat Allergy, Babesia, Ehrlichiosis, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Ticks