Officials are seeing three diseases passed onto humans from a tick bite. Perhaps the most notorious being Lyme Disease, which can come with long-lasting health complications. According to state data, there were 127 reported cases of Lyme disease in Tennessee last year (statistics have not been compiled for 2019 yet).   Several cases have been reported in Cumberland County lately. One Cumberland County resident who had a tick bite for several days did not realize it was a tick bite.  They thought it was a mosquito bite.  After a couple days they noticed bruising around the bite area and muscle pain as well.  Turns out it was a tick bite and treatment was started with antibiotics.  A simple antibiotic, doxycycline, can be used to snuff out most of the diseases — if they are recognized and treated early.

Although Lyme disease is the most prevalent tick-borne infection in the U.S., experts are seeing more serious tick-borne illnesses — some of them fatal if not treated right away.

In August, New York state health officials said a resident died of Powassan virus, a rare but potentially serious disease spread by the blacklegged or deer tick. The resident lived in Gardiner and had underlying health conditions, according to the Ulster County Health Department. They said it was the first known case of someone in the state being diagnosed with the disease this summer.

In June, health officials in New Jersey investigated two confirmed cases of Powassan virus in Sussex County, in the northwest corner of the state.

Another illness spread to humans by a tick bite is referred to as Ehrlichia, infecting 26 people last year.

Most concerning of all is Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, by far the most common illness in the state, responsible for infecting 532 people last year, and another 770 the year prior.

State Deputy Epidemiologist, Dr. John Dunn says Tennessee has some of the most cases in the country of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. “We want people to know, if they have a fever in and they’ve been outside or outside pets which come inside and they know they had a tick on them, to see their medical provider and tell the provider about the tick bite.”

Dr. Dunn says all three illnesses have similar flu-like symptoms, along with a fever, body aches and in some cases a rash.