Title: Rhode Island tick-borne disease surveillance summary 2012-2013.
Abstract: The latter has a complex life cycle supported by the blood of various mammalian species, but none more important locally than the white-footed mouse and the white-tailed deer, whose numbers (and therefore the numbers of blacklegged ticks hosted by them) have increased dramatically over the past several decades. This trend has been spurred by the expansion of supportive habitats such as second-growth woodlands and suburban developments, both of which provide abundant food and cover for both species. 2 The resultant increase in ticks, absent a vaccine to prevent any of the tick-borne illnesses common in Rhode Island, has led to an increase in the probability of contracting Lyme disease, babesiosis, or anaplasmosis in the state. Surveillance of newly diagnosed cases of tick-borne diseases is essential to the development, testing, and evaluation of public health programs designed to prevent them. Nonetheless, the nature of these diseases and the tests available to confirm them result in high surveillance costs. For example, there is no definitive laboratory test for confirming new cases of Lyme disease. 3
Publication Year: 2014
Publication Date: 2014-09-02
Language: en
Type: article
Indexed In: ['pubmed']
Access and Citation
Cited By Count: 3
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