Rates of babesiosis, a tick-borne parasitic disease, increased an average of 9% per year in the United States between 2015 and 2022 and four in 10 patients were found to be co-infected with another tick-borne illness such as Lyme disease, according to a new study led by researchers at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center and Penn State College of Medicine. These findings suggest that clinicians should have a heightened vigilance of co-infection of other tick-borne illness among patients admitted with babesiosis.
Ticks can carry other bacteria that cause Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseases like anaplasmosis and ehrlichiosis." Paddy Ssentongo, infectious disease fellow, Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center and lead author of the study They published their findings today (Oct 8) in the journal Open Forum Infectious Diseases.
Babesiosis, sometimes referred to as "American malaria," is caused by the Babesia parasite and is transmitted from bites of black-legged ticks. It's found primarily in Northeastern and Midwestern states. Like malaria, the parasite infects red blood cells, and the condition shares many similar clinical symptoms.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), although some people do not develop symptoms, others experience flu-like symptoms.
The disease can be deadly for older adults and those with certain health conditions, such as a weakened immune system or lack of spleen. "Understanding the drivers.
