Ticks and Transmission: Nasty Little Bugs, Nastier Disease

Various types of ticks transmit infectious pathogens known as vector-borne diseases. Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne disease, but other tick-borne diseases, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, anaplasmosis, babesiosis, ehrlichiosis, and tularemia, also pose serious threats to human health. Alpha-gal syndrome has also emerged as a health threat. It is not an infection but a serious allergy that develops after a tick bite in some people. This continuing education activity discusses these other, less common tick-borne diseases, their symptoms, and appropriate treatments, as well as alpha-gal syndrome.