Nonprofit warning Utahns about Lyme disease risk, symptoms

Nonprofit warning Utahns about Lyme disease risk, symptoms

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LAYTON — When Lori Holt’s 12-year-old daughter was bitten by a tick while camping at Heber Valley Camp in 2010, she feared the worst: Lyme disease.

Caused by a bacteria transmitted in tick bites, Lyme disease a debilitating illness that can cause fevers, headaches, rashes and sometimes even arthritis and neurological or cardiac disorders. It is also one of the most misunderstood diseases, according to Holt, who is now the president of the Utah Lyme Disease Alliance.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Lyme disease cases have been steadily increasing each year across the nation, and about 300,000 people are diagnosed with the disease annually. Although it is more common in the Midwest, Lyme disease has been reported in all 50 states.

"Most of the Lyme disease cases in Utah come from people who are traveling. They are bitten by a tick in another state, and when they come to Utah, they have Lyme disease," said Rebecca Ward, a health educator for the Utah Department of Health.

But according to a study released by the U.S. Geological Survey, warmer winters lead to a longer tick season, and therefore more cases of Lyme disease.

This past winter in Utah has been the warmest winter in the state's history, which may mean more ticks this season.

Bitten by a tick

Five years ago, when Holt's daughter was bitten by a tick, Holt said the doctors in Utah were largely uninformed about the prevalence of Lyme disease.

“Doctors told me: ‘We don’t have Lyme disease here,’” Holt said. “They brushed even the possibility of Lyme disease in Utah under the rug.”


Doctors told me: 'We don't have Lyme disease here.' They brushed even the possibility of Lyme disease in Utah under the rug.

–Lori Holt, Utah Lyme Disease Alliance


Holt’s daughter fell sick three weeks after the initial tick bite and was later diagnosed with the disease. She missed most of her 7th and 8th-grade years of school because of the illness.

After receiving little help from doctors in Utah, Holt took her daughter to a Lyme disease specialist in Seattle for antibiotic treatments every two months. It was a rigorous, expensive and time-consuming process, Holt said, but her daughter was eventually able to return to school and is now functioning with no lasting symptoms.

Holt and the ULDA are working to spread awareness of Lyme disease and provide a support group with regular meetings for those with the disease. Since it was made a nonprofit organization in 2012, it has grown to more than 200 members.

“Our goal is to get correct information out there and provide education about the dangers and risks of Lyme (disease),” Holt said. “Treatment is rarely covered by insurance and is often not given enough attention by doctors because of inadequate guidelines regarding what to do with Lyme disease patients.”

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But Utah is moving in the right direction when it comes to Lyme disease education and treatment, Holt said. More doctors are capable of addressing the disease, and a new drug called Curza is being developed by the University of Utah to help combat Lyme disease, Holt said.

Holt said the main problem now is that many people do not take Lyme disease seriously, and don't take the necessary precautions to avoid it.

In a 2012 CDC study in which more than 3,500 people were polled, 21 percent said that a member of their households had found a tick on his or her body within the previous year; yet, more than half did not take steps to prevent tick bites during warm weather.

Preventing and correctly identifying Lyme disease

Prevention

There are many ways to make sure you are staying safe outdoors and aware of the dangers ticks can pose.

  • Stay out of tall grass, bushes and dead leaves on the ground.
  • Walk in the center of trails when hiking.
  • Wear long pants and tuck pant legs into socks when hiking.
  • Use repellant with at least 30 percent DEET.
  • Shower as soon as possible after coming indoors and check body for ticks.
  • Remove any attached ticks as soon as possible with tweezers, making sure not to leave the tick’s head inside your skin.
Symptoms

Holt said Lyme disease may affect everyone differently, but there are several common symptoms you can look out for.

  • Flu-like symptoms with fevers, fatigue, nausea or headaches are common.
  • A rash sometimes in the pattern of a “bull’s-eye” can emerge in the spot of the bite.
  • Neck aches and arthritis are sometimes apparent after a few weeks.
  • The most severe symptoms include brain fog and cardiac disorders.
Holt said if one thinks he or she has contracted Lyme disease, immediately see a doctor who understands the disease and reach out to a support group like the ULDA.

“Lyme disease is like AIDS was when it first emerged,” Holt said. “There is so much that is misunderstood about it now, but as more people learn about it, the spread of Lyme disease can be curbed.”


Spencer Ricks is a KSL.com news writing intern and student at Dixie State University from Snoqualmie, Washington. Contact him at newsintern@deseretdigital.com.

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