Disease-carrying ticks are showing up earlier in B.C., and in greater numbers
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Yahoo
6 days ago
- Yahoo
Why are tick bites sending so many people to the emergency room this summer?
While working as a youth camp doctor in upstate New York earlier this summer, Dr. Matt Harris noticed he was removing a dozen ticks from campers each day, more than in years prior. Harris, an emergency medicine doctor at Northwell Medicine, said summer camp isn't the only place seeing a surge of tick bites: He and other doctors have been seeing more people coming into the ER because of ticks. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this July has seen more ER visits for tick bites so far than the past eight Julys. Tick-related hospital visits typically peak in May. This May, tick bites accounted for 134 out of every 100,000 ER visits, the highest level since 2019, the CDC says. Rates were highest in the Northeast and the Midwest. Harris and other doctors said this rise in ER visits may be due to increased awareness about ticks. 'I think because there's so much out there in the media about this, people are coming in before they get engorged,' Harris said. 'So they're coming in when the tick is small.' Thomas Mather, an entomologist at the University of Rhode Island who researches ticks, attributed the trend to the migration of ticks to more heavily populated areas. Warmer temperatures and more intense humidity mean that ticks are found in a wider geographic area and tick season lasts longer. Tick bites tend to happen more in the spring, summer and fall, when people are outdoors. May and June are the most troublesome months, Mather said. Although everyone is susceptible to tick bites, small children account for the greatest proportion of ER visits. Mather and Harris both said this is because kids are more likely to be in outdoor environments where ticks are present. What diseases do ticks cause? Different species of ticks carry different diseases. The most common tick-borne illness is Lyme disease, Mather said. The infection — which can cause a bull's-eye rash — is spread by the black-legged deer tick and caused by Borrelia bacteria. Nearly half a million people are diagnosed or treated for Lyme disease each year, according to the CDC. Other diseases spread by ticks include the heartland virus and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. Not all tick bites result in infections. The longer a tick stays latched to skin, the higher chance that harmful bacteria can lead to infection, said Dr. Daniel Solomon, an infectious disease doctor at Brigham and Woman's Hospital in Boston. But doctors say that people are often seeking care because of the tick itself, not because of any symptoms of illness. Dr. Meredith Porter, medical director at Inova-GoHealth Urgent Care in Virginia, said she commonly sees patients without any symptoms come in with the tick still attached. 'That's why going to get the tick off early on with recognition is important,' Harris said. 'It's not a 2 o'clock in the morning emergency, but it's within the next couple of hours.' What to do if you get a tick bite Symptoms vary depending on the type of tick, but markers for many tick-borne illnesses include flu-like symptoms like a fever and body aches. These symptoms can take several days to weeks to manifest. Solomon said that for people without symptoms, a trip to the emergency room is not necessary. Visiting urgent care or even a simple phone call to a doctor will suffice, he said. 'This is not a 911 emergency — we should be really clear,' Harris said. 'Do not call the ambulance for this.' To prevent tick bites, use bug spray and wear long pants and long sleeves, especially in grassy or wooded areas. After spending time in an area where ticks are found, people should do a self-check for any ticks attached to their skin. Ticks should be removed as soon as possible. Porter recommends using tweezers to gently grasp the tick close to the skin. Harris said to avoid squeezing the tick tightly during removal, because it may increase the risk of infection. This article was originally published on Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Yahoo
Wildfires show why CBC needs public safety mandate: researcher
OTTAWA — The wildfires that are flaring up across Canada again are one of the reasons public safety should be added to CBC/Radio-Canada's mandate, a new report from a research centre at McGill University argues. The report says other public media around the world are incorporating national emergency preparedness and crisis response into their role, and recommends that aspect of the CBC's mandate be formalized and strengthened. "For us in Canada, wildfires and floods have sort of crept up on us in the last five years as part of an everyday reality," said Jessica Johnson, a senior fellow at McGill University's Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy, who co-authored the report released Wednesday. "They were always a reality if you were living in heavily forested areas. But now the smoke from some parts is affecting the whole country and even our neighbours." On Monday and Tuesday, special air-quality statements caused by wildfire smoke were in effect in many areas of the country, with the government warning residents to consider limiting time outdoors and watch for symptoms of smoke exposure. Thousands of people in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta have been forced out of their homes this spring and summer due to the wildfires. The report says previous research that looked at false information during wildfires in Canada found that on social media, "influential right-wing and anti-establishment groups blamed arson by green terrorists and the government for the fires, which further fuelled a distrust in the media in the moments when accurate information was critically important." Johnson said in the interview that "if there's misinformation online that's telling people it's just a hoax, you don't need to evacuate, that puts people's lives at risk." There are also wider concerns about misinformation. Facebook, a platform many have come to rely on for information, blocks news content in Canada, while some Canadians are increasingly turning to generative AI for information, even though such systems can make mistakes and provide false information. "We've lost a lot of the healthy sources in addition to the arrival of the unreliable sources of information," Johnson said. While some countries in recent years have been changing the mandates of their public media in response to the climate crisis, she explained, others have been doing it in response to security concerns — for instance, Baltic countries looking at their proximity to Russia. The head of the recent public inquiry into foreign interference concluded that misinformation and disinformation are an existential threat to Canada's democracy, Johnson noted. "So you start putting it all together and you realize public media starts to look not like a nice to have. It starts to like a part of your communications infrastructure," Johnson said. During this year's federal election, the Liberals promised to increase the CBC's funding by an initial $150 million annually, and to make a number of changes to the its mandate. That includes adding "the clear and consistent transmission of life-saving information during emergencies." Johnson said it's important to ensure that the CBC isn't just repeating information provided by the government, but that it's able to question and hold the government to account. Another key element is ensuring the public broadcaster has the ability to do the work it's tasked with, especially at the local level. Johnson gave the example of residents in an area facing a wildfire, who should be able to find information about potential evacuations affecting their community, instead of media reports being focused on broadly informing Canadians across the country about the fire. She noted there are parts of the country where, when it comes to media presence, the CBC "is kind of the only game in town or in the nearest town." Johnson said one option is for the CBC to partner with local independent journalists, a model which has been implemented in Britain and "could be a great model for Canada." Changing technology also means there are technical issues to consider — internet and cellphone networks can go down, and many people don't have traditional TV or radios anymore. "I think it's a government responsibility to do that work, whether it involves research, and say, are we actually prepared, and who needs to be involved in a conversation about making sure that we're prepared?" The CRTC, Canada's broadcast and telecom regulator, announced Tuesday that it's launching a consultation on how to improve Canada's public alert system. It requires cellphone, cable and satellite providers, and TV and radio broadcasters to distribute emergency alerts. Johnson's report concludes that Canada's emergency preparedness needs are changing, and that means "CBC-Radio Canada may need to be structured to serve the country in ways it hasn't had to in the past." This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 16, 2025. Anja Karadeglija, The Canadian Press Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Hamilton Spectator
15-07-2025
- Hamilton Spectator
Ticks and Lyme disease rising in Halton: report
Check your legs after walking through the tall grass in Halton. According to a report presented to regional council at its July 9 meeting, Lyme disease from blacklegged ticks is expected to rise in the region, with the percentage of blacklegged ticks carrying it having greatly increased in recent years. Twice a year, a tick dragging exercise is conducted at roughly 10 wooded or brushy sites across Halton, allowing the region to count both the prevalence of ticks and the Lyme disease positivity rate. In spring 2025, the first of the year's two surveillance exercises, 61 blacklegged ticks were collected. Of those, 23 tested positive for Lyme disease — a 37.7 per cent positivity rate. Coun. Rory Nisan of Burlington said he has personally witnessed an increase in the arachnid. 'All the data is showing that things are worse, but I didn't see something in the report showing how Halton is going to up its game, try to do more. Maybe there isn't more that we can do other than communicate and try to work with people. But, is there anything more that we could be doing given the significant increase and the dangers,' said Nisan. Dr. Deepika Lobo, commissioner and medical officer of health, confirmed there isn't much the region can do. 'We are doing everything we can at this time. The focus now is on educating people to prevent tick bites or ticks on them, because most of the ticks now are due to climate change, so not much we can do,' said Lobo. 'The focus is on what you can do around your property, what you can do personally to prevent. But we're also hoping that eventually there might be some vaccine that can come, that we can promote.' Public health uses a variety of approaches to respond to vector-borne diseases, including a larvicide control program to reduce the numbers of the disease-carrying creatures, public education, personal protective measures and monitoring. Anyone looking for more information on ticks in Halton can visit the region's information page on the topic at . The site includes a guide for removing a tick safely, as well as tips to reduce the number of ticks around a person's home. Coun. Paul Sharman of Burlington said he has personally witnessed the harm these diseases can do. 'I know so many people who have been bitten by them, so many people who have become seriously ill by these things — it's not something anybody wants,' said Sharman. 'I found one on my back just walking around my garden — it really ticked me off.' Lyme disease is not the only vector-borne illness currently being found in Ontario. In 2023, the province declared anaplasmosis, babesiosis and powassan virus as three new reportable tick-borne diseases of public health significance. There have been no human cases of these confirmed in Halton Region. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
