While most people are familiar with Lyme disease and the dangers ticks pose by carrying the bacteria that causes this serious and debilitating condition, a lot of people are unaware that the dangers don’t just stop with Lyme. Ticks are quite nasty little buggers, carrying a host of other potential diseases that they are more than happy to transfer to their hosts. While Lyme disease is typically the most common, and most well-known, other tick-borne diseases can be just as dangerous, or in some cases even worse.

Tick-Borne Diseases Other Than Lyme

When you think of hiking and outdoor activities in the warmer months, pests and parasites such as ticks certainly come to mind for just about everyone. And while we’ve shared information on preventing Lyme disease and reducing your chance of picking up ticks when you adventure in the great outdoors, the risks don’t just stop there. The scary truth is that there are several more diseases that ticks carry and can transfer to humans when they bite and infect their hosts (us!), and even Lyme disease can be harder to test for and diagnose than previously thought due to neurological and other variations. 

Some of the diseases carried by ticks in addition to Lyme, that can be found throughout Pennsylvania and the surrounding region, include anaplasmosis, babesiosis, ehrlichiosis, tularemia, and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. To make matters even more confusing, many of these diseases have similar symptoms, making them increasingly difficult to diagnose and treat. While most of these diseases respond well to antibiotics, that’s not the case for everyone and in some cases even reaching a positive diagnosis is more than half the battle.

More than Lyme, ticks carry many diseases throughout Pennsylvania and our surrounding region with the blacklegged deer tick being the most prevalent and among the most dangerous. Image credit CDC.

Quick Facts on Tick-Borne Diseases Other Than Lyme

To help you better understand the various tick-borne diseases found in Pennsylvania, we’ve compiled this quick list with the help of the CDC’s tick diseases guide. While it’s not a tool to gauge which disease you or your loved one may have – only a medical professional can do that – it is a good way to educate yourself to ask the right questions should you or a loved one experience strange symptoms and have difficulty in finding answers. 

Tick-Borne Diseases

• Anaplasmosis – carried by the blacklegged tick, also known as the deer tick prevalent throughout the region. Similar to Lyme disease, people with anaplasmosis will often have a fever, headache, chills, and muscle aches. Symptoms usually present in 1-5 days from the point of transmission and are often easier to identify as a fever is relatively common, though not always present.
• Babesiosis – also carried by the blacklegged tick though more frequently in the nymph rather than grown adults, this disease infects red blood cells. Most common in the warmer months, many people may be affected and never know or display symptoms. In some cases, the body can rid itself of this disease on its own, while in other cases usually in the immuno-compromised or weak, symptoms may appear and require medical intervention. 
• Ehrlichiosis – another one spread by the dreaded blacklegged tick, this disease can often cause fever, chills, headache, muscle aches, and sometimes an upset stomach. Similar to Lyme and anaplasmosis, this is treatable by antibiotics based on a positive diagnosis.
• Rocky Mountain spotted fever – this is a newer disease to our area. As the name implies, it originated in the Rocky Mountains of the United States, and over the years has spread beyond the mountains. Carried by the Rocky Mountain wood tick, and also the common American dog tick, this disease has spread from west to east and even farther up north in recent years. Symptoms may include fever, headache, rash, nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, muscle pain, lack of appetite however are very non-specific to RMSF making this a challenge to diagnose. This can be a fast-progressing disease, making this one to mention if any symptoms rapidly appear especially after spending time in the woods. 
• Tularemia – this is a less common disease however it is found throughout the entire United States except for Hawaii. It is carried by dog ticks, wood ticks, and less commonly, deer flies. More common in rodents, it can be transmitted by handling infected animals and caution is recommended. Symptoms vary greatly but this disease is treatable with antibiotics.

Even Lyme disease itself, while more common and well-known than other tick-borne diseases, can be difficult to identify. In one case, a woman sadly lost her husband to Lyme in conjunction with two other tick-borne diseases, because he never presented with the traditional symptoms of early stages of Lyme disease or a tick bite, and tick-borne diseases were ruled out. It was only after nearly a year of declining cognitive and neurological health and the help of a family member, that they circled back to testing for tick-borne diseases. Unfortunately, her husband ultimately lost his battle with the diseases and the treatment was not enough to overcome the damage done to his brain and neurological system. 

Should things go awry, or you are concerned you or a loved one are experiencing unexplained and hard to identify symptoms, we are here to help. Dr. J. Andre Garabedian MD, is board-certified in Family Practice and is also board-certified in Integrative Medicine with an understanding that there is more than Lyme when it comes to tick-borne diseases. In addition, he is also a part of the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society. Above all, remember, be safe this summer and wear that insect repellent!