Ticks bugging the North Shore; White flags help reveal growing insect problem By Martina Brendel , Staff writer Salem News
View as a multiple pages IPSWICH - The white flag, traditionally a symbol of surrender, is proving a valuable weapon in the fight against tick-borne illnesses on the North Shore.
For the last three years, researchers from the Brigham and Women's Hospital Lyme Disease Prevention Team have been using the flags to drag for ticks in backyards from Boxford to Beverly. The purpose is to alert residents to the risk right outside their door while gathering data on the North Shore's growing tick problem.
"The North Shore of Massachusetts is an endemic area, and it's very important to be able to educate the children and the community about the risks around them," said Dr. Nancy Shadick, the project's principal investigator.
The researchers drag the flags, made of a 3-foot-by-3-foot piece of white flannel, around the yards of volunteers, then examine them for the bug that can be as small as a poppy seed. The specimens are then sent to the University of Massachusetts Amherst for testing.
"I think I found one!" said Kaleena Scamman, 24, yesterday while dragging for ticks in a backyard on Argilla Road. Susan Tooke, another research assistant, scooped up the tiny arachnid with a pair of tweezers and placed it in a clear, plastic vial.
"It's really random. It's weird," Tooke said. "We can go to two houses right next to each other, and one will have tons of ticks while the other has none."
In 2005, researchers found 50 ticks in 42 yards, and 14 percent tested positive for Lyme disease. The following year, they found 62 ticks in 51 yards, and 34 percent were infected.
Melanie Zibit, the project manager, attributes the rise in Lyme disease to the development of previously wooded areas that were once habitat for deer and to the growth in the deer population. By cleaning up leaf piles and leaving mulch around wooded areas, she said, residents can minimize the problem.
"People really get anxious about it when we're here finding ticks," Tooke said. "But there are things you can do to minimize the risk, like keeping your grass short, putting mulch on the ground. But mostly it's about checking yourself and your kids after they've been playing outside."
The tick drags are only a small part of what the Lyme Disease Prevention Team does. Most of its work has concentrated on the schools. It surveys students to see how knowledgeable they are about the disease and then has them sit through a 45-minute educational presentation. A year later, the students are tested to see how much they have retained.
So far, the team has visited schools in Topsfield, Middleton, Boxford, Ipswich, Hamilton, Wenham, Beverly and Manchester-by-the-Sea. The goal, ultimately, is to develop a standardized Lyme disease prevention curriculum that can be used to teach second- through fifth-graders across the country.
"It's an innovative project, and what's unique about it is it's geared specifically at schoolchildren who are at very high risk for Lyme disease," Shadick said. "Part of the project is to survey parents about their attitudes and practices toward tick prevention. That increases the child's ability to prevent the disease." Posted by Foggy (Member # 1584) on :
Too bad that hospital is one of the least LL in the area. Posted by bettyg (Member # 6147) on :
foggy. how about writing the newspaper with your feedback? interesting article; thx for posting. Posted by 5dana8 (Member # 7935) on :
Thanks dizzy for posting this article
Glad to see they are doing the tick dragging & awareness programs. Wish more community's would do this.
![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
![[Roll Eyes]](rolleyes.gif)
![[Wink]](wink.gif)
![[Smile]](smile.gif)