Symptoms of Lyme Disease and Other Tick-Borne Illnesses

Here are specific symptoms associated with some of the more common tick-borne illnesses affecting people.

Lyme disease

Deer ticks that carry borrelia bacteria, which causes Lyme disease, are found throughout most of the U.S., as well as Canada and Europe. If you spend time in grassy, brushy or wooded areas, you’re more at risk of contracting the disease. Symptoms include:

A rash that looks like a target or bulls-eye, spreading out from the site of the tick bite
Fever
Headache
Fatigue
Joint stiffness
Muscle aches and pains
Swollen lymph nodes

Early symptoms usually appear within the first 30 days, although not everyone has obvious symptoms after getting Lyme disease. If the illness is not identified and treated during this stage, it can cause more serious and widespread disease.

Anaplasmosis and Ehrlichiosis

These are two closely related diseases that are transmitted to humans from the bite of an infected tick. The tick bite that causes these diseases is usually painless, and most people don’t even know they’ve been bitten. The most common symptoms include:

Fever/chills
Severe headache
Muscle aches

Less common symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, weight loss, abdominal pain, diarrhea, cough, aching joints, rash and change in mental status.

Babesiosis

This is a malaria-like parasite that infects red blood cells and causes flu-like symptoms such as fever, chills, headache, body aches, fatigue, loss of appetite and nausea. Some people may not have any symptoms.

Babesiosis can cause severe disease in older people, people who don’t have a spleen and those with compromised immune systems or other serious health conditions. It can even be fatal.

Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever

This is a tick-borne disease transmitted by the American dog tick, the Rocky Mountain wood tick and the brown dog tick. The most common symptoms include:

Rash
Fever/chills
Headache
Sore throat
Body aches
Stomach ache
Decreased appetite
Nausea/vomiting/diarrhea
Sensitivity to light
Confusion

If untreated, serious complications can occur, including nerve damage, paralysis, gangrene, hearing loss, incontinence and even death.

Powassan (POW)

This virus is spread by the same type of tick that spreads Lyme disease. Many people who develop powassan do not have any symptoms, but if they do, symptoms may include:

Fever
Headache
Vomiting
Weakness
Confusion
Loss of coordination
Speech difficulties
Seizures

Severe infections may cause neurological symptoms, paralysis and even death.

Alpha-Gal Syndrome (AGS)

Alpha-gal syndrome is not a virus or bacterial infection but is an allergic reaction to a sugar found in the tissues of all mammals except humans and primates. The lone star tick can transmit AGS to humans, which can cause the immune system to produce antibodies.

There is no treatment for AGS but people who have the condition can prevent allergic reactions from occurring by not eating meat or other products containing alpha-gal. Levels of antibodies may decline over time, so some people may eventually be able to eat meat and products containing alpha-gal without an allergic reaction.

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_{Medical Review: Perry Pitkow, MD}

by Everything Lifestyle Staff

Symptoms of Lyme Disease and Other Tick-Borne Illnesses

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