Here are all our Tick Week stories in one place. So you can share the whole story with friends and family with just one link.
Portland, Maine — Over the course of the week, we explored innovative ways scientists, physicians and biologists are helping to protect people and our pets from ticks and the diseases they carry.
Here are all our Tick Week stories in one place. So you can share the whole story with your friends and family with just one link.
Experts track new tick species and disease in Maine
So far this year, Maine’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has tallyed 374 cases of Lyme disease, following last year’s record of more than 2,600. Research shows deer ticks are expanding into new areas of Maine. And they carry more and more disease-causing pathogens as they move.
Experts say “tick season” is quite an issue year-round due to changing climates. And warmer winters could lead to more favorable habitat for new species, such as the lone star tick, which have been linked to red meat allergies, according to researchers.
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Tickborne Infections On the Rise in Maine
Health officials are warning about a sharp increase in tick-borne diseases that could be more serious than Lyme disease.
The disease is called babesiosis and most recently the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Added Maine to the list of New England states. which is a deadly infection in our state. Federal health officials say cases of tick-borne illness skyrocketed by more than 1,400 percent over an eight-year period. Symptoms may appear similar to those of Lyme, but they are distinctly different. It can also be treated if detected early. But for Maine ticks, this rare disease has turned their lives upside down.
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Maine patients want labs to provide more Lyme test data
News Center The state of Maine is reviewing just one FDA-approved lab test for Lyme disease and its co-infection: a blood test that checks for antibodies in the body’s response to the disease. But many experts say the two-step test recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tends to miss lime early on. When treatment is most effective in stopping the infection
A number of patients who have spent years trying to find out if they have Lyme are asking Maine lawmakers to make sure doctors get more diagnostic information with test results to help them make an accurate diagnosis.
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Photo Project Focuses on Lyme Disease
For patients with Lyme disease and tick-borne diseases Treatment can be challenging and painful.
Patients often feel misunderstood or even invisible. because they may look strong but have symptoms that destroy within the body
Jiatong Lu is a professional photographer who captures the realities of living with Lyme to focus on the number of deaths from the disease.
Lu was diagnosed with neurological Lyme disease and co-infection two years ago. After a difficult journey to heal She is now photographing patients across the country to give them a voice. After feeling that their suffering was invisible to the whole world
Lu said her nightmare with Lyme started in 2021.
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Children in Maine are learning skills for tick identification and tick-borne diseases.
At the end of the tick week We are focusing on how Maine’s next generation learns new skills and information to better protect themselves from ticks over the course of their lives.
knowledge is important Health experts say that children between the ages of 5 and 9 are at the highest risk for Lyme and other tick-borne diseases. Rolling around in the grass and playing outside makes them more vulnerable to tick embedding.
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