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Colorado Tick Fever Increase in Montana
Emerging Infectious Diseases (Soto, Raymond A., et al.) 3.23, has published “Increase in Colorado Tick Fever Virus Disease Cases and Effect of COVID-19 Pandemic on Behaviors and Testing Practices, Montana, 2020.” The authors describe a large reported increase in Colorado tick fever (CTF) cases in Montana in 2020. CTF is a virus transmitted primarily by Rocky Mountain wood tick (Dermacentor andersoni). The authors present their subsequent case-control study of residents who tested positive during 2020 for CTF.
The study assessed healthcare providers’ knowledge, testing practices, and testing methods. Additionally, researchers found that patients spent more time on outdoor recreation on weekends and all of them found a tick on them. The State lab sent testing specimens to CDC−where more sensitive molecular methods are used− due to the COVID testing needs at that time. The authors concluded that the change in testing to the more sensitive CDC methods probably increased case detection of Colorado tick fever cases.
Rocky Mountain wood tick. Female and Male. Photo credit: James Gathany-CDC/Dr. Christopher Paddock.
For More Information
LDA website on Colorado Tick Fever