Update advises of tick-spread illness in state Threat of bites a medical conference topic.
By JACOB LUECKE of the Columbia Tribune’s staff Published February 10, 2007
As medical practitioners in what Will Roland calls the "Bermuda Triangle of tick-borne diseases," Missouri physicians should be on the lookout for sicknesses caused by the tiny bloodsuckers.
"In the spring and summer in Missouri, these tick-borne diseases should go through your head a little," said Roland, an associate professor of clinical medicine at the University of Missouri-Columbia.
Tick-borne diseases weren’t prevalent decades ago in Missouri, but they have become a growing problem, Roland told a gathering of medical professionals yesterday at the Columbia Courtyard Marriott.
"The big reason in Boone County is deer," Roland said. "In the 1930s, you couldn’t find a deer. The hillbillies had wiped them all out."
But as deer populations have grown, tick populations also have surged. In the world of infectious disease experts such as Roland, deer "are just like giant rats."
Rather than focus on the much-hyped - yet very rare - Lyme disease, Roland talked in-depth about Ehrlichiosis, a lesser-known and more dangerous disease people can contract from tick bites.
The first case of Ehrlichiosis was identified in the United States in 1986. Since then, hundreds more cases have been found, with Missouri as the leading state for diagnosing the disease. Since it was discovered in the United States, more than 145 cases of Ehrlichiosis have been diagnosed in Missouri. Texas has had the second-highest number of cases with 53.
Last year, Missouri had 54 cases of Ehrlichiosis, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.
"It’s a growth industry," Roland joked.
The disease can start with sudden onset of nausea, lead to prolonged fever and, in some cases, death. However, if the disease is spotted early enough, it can be successfully treated.
Recognizing seldom-seen tick-related illnesses such as Ehrlichiosis can be difficult for medical personnel not familiar with the diseases.
"Some of them can be very, very subtle and difficult to diagnose," said Brian Johnson, a Boone Hospital Center infectious disease specialist who helped organize the presentation. "If we can get folks out there seeing their patients on a daily basis just a little bit of a clue what to look for, it helps everyone."
Roland’s talk kicked off a weekendlong Infectious Disease Update conference in Columbia, sponsored by Boone Hospital. Other presentations were to tackle HIV, pneumonia and other diseases. Two tick-related presentations bookend the conference, with the second focusing on Lyme disease.
Johnson said the focus on ticks was intentional. "In Missouri, we have a lot of tick bites," he said. "And if you look at the Centers for Disease Control’s numbers, you’ll see that a lot of tick-borne disease is right here in Oklahoma, Missouri and Arkansas."
About 80 caregivers from around Missouri are attending the conference, far surpassing Johnson’s expectations.
"I’ve never thrown a good party," he said, "so I was just hoping that a dozen would show up."
With temperatures below freezing for weeks, it’s nowhere near tick season. But when spring and summer arrive, Roland advises people going outdoors to wear long sleeves and pants, use bug repellents and to walk along cleared trails.
And if a tick bites?
"You don’t use a match; you don’t put kerosene on it," Roland said, referring to some common but improper reactions.
Instead, Roland prescribes: "Tweezers. Perpendicular to skin. Grab tick. Pressure, pull. Repeat process as needed."
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