Placer County Warns Residents About Ticks With Lyme Disease

January 26, 2012 9:20 AM

Close Up Of An Adult Female An Adult Male Nymph And Larva Tick Is Shown June 15 2001

PLACER COUNTY (CBS13) – Placer County health officials are warning residents to be cautious after several ticks have tested positive for Lyme Disease in the county.

Health officials say eight tick samples have tested positive for the disease which can cause fever, headache, fatigue and a rash. If left untreated, Lyme disease can affect the joints, hearts and nervous system.

Although most people associate tick and Lyme disease with summer months, there has been a population increase since the late fall in Placer County.

“We are concerned that with the milder winter we have been experiencing, a lot of folks will be taking the opportunity to engage in outdoor activities, such as hiking in tick habitat, and potentially putting themselves at risk for tick-borne disease,” said Joel Buettner, General Manager of the Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District.

The District advises residents who may be working or recreating in tick habitat to exercise caution and implement the following tick-borne prevention strategies:
• Wear long pants and long-sleeved shirts. Tuck pant legs into boots or socks and tuck shirts into pants.
• Wear light-colored clothing so ticks can be easily seen.
• Apply a repellent, such as DEET, registered for use against ticks. Always follow directions on the container and be careful when applying to children. Before entering tick habitat, permethrin spray may be applied to clothing to kill ticks.
• Stay in the middle of the trail. Avoid trail margins, brush and grassy areas.
• Inspect yourself frequently for ticks while in tick habitats. Once out of tick habitat, thoroughly check your entire body for ticks up to three days after being in tick areas. Parents should examine their children, especially on the scalp, hairline and skin folds.

For more information on ticks in Placer County, contact the Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District at (888) 768-2343 or visit www.placermosquito.org.

Captain Safteypants

Ticks are the worst! You really have to be on your guard against them. Only through vigilance can we protect ourselves and our families from these tiny insect terrorists. There really should be a plan to build a colony on the moon and send all the ticks there, then perhaps lure them into the airlock, and…
TICK SHY

I got Lyme from a tick bite in Orangevale. Doctors in this area are inexperienced with diagnosing Lyme, and results from the “Western Blot” blood test are VERY unreliable, often times showing false negatives. Area doctors rely on those blood tests.
In my case, I visited several doctors, underwent many different kinds of tests and consulted with Neurologists, but it wasn’t until seeing an INFECTIOUS DISEASE SPECIALIST, and undergoing a spinal tap, that the diagnosis was made. A full year went by between the tick bite and the Lyme diagnosis, a year of suffering and not knowing what was wrong!
T. Luttrell

People need to understand the complexity of Lyme disease. Many doctors won’t treat it unless a patient presents with a rash. But a large number of people never have the classic bull’s eye rash. I know first hand that Lyme disease can be chronic and debilitating. Anyone who suspects they have it should do some research about treatment and symptoms. One month of antibiotic does NOT always cure it.
Heather

8 tick samples, eh? So I wonder what the ratio is…lyme infected vs non-lyme infected? 8/10=80%? 8/8=100%? They didn’t mention the other serious diseases ticks may be infected with….
Green with Lyme not Envy

Perhaps El Dorado County should also put out a warning regarding tick bites and Lyme Disease. I got infected with Lyme compliments of a tick bite while hiking with dogs at Folsom Lake back in 2007. It was 3 YEARS before it was properly diagnosed after seeing over a half dozen Dr.’s who could not figure it out, or worse yet accused me of making up symptoms or that it was all in my head! I mentioned to my own general practitioner that I did remember being bit by a tick, but she told me “You cant possibly have Lyme Disease, we dont have that in this area”. She did give me 2 weeks of antibiotics, but it was too late. Anyone suspecting Lyme Disease should be tested by IGENEX labs in Palo Alto. Find a Lyme Literate Dr. for treatment such as Dr. Rafael Stricker in San Francisco. Go to lymedisease.org for more accurate info on this horrible disease.
http://lymeinside.wordpress.com/2012/01/26/8-ticks-test-positive-for-lyme-disease-in-placer-county-ca/ 8 Ticks test positive for Lyme Disease in Placer County, CA « Lyme Inside – Living with Lyme Disease

[...] Read more about it here or Read more here [...]
Lyme for 15+ years and counting

If you really want to get people’s attention and educate our community responsibly, you need to show the effects of the disease itself! Lyme disease is an epidemic unlike any other and highly under-reported as both CDC and IDSA have reported. If people knew the hell they would experience after contracting Lyme Disease as I have, they might pay closer attention to your reports/warning.