Don't underestimate seriousness of Lyme disease

By Hannah Fletcher, For Lee Agri-Media
Tuesday, May 17, 2005 8:06 AM CDT

BRIGHTON, Iowa - Kathy Cuddeback has always led an active outdoor life but that active life has been impaired by a disease resulting from her love of the outdoors.

Cuddeback was diagnosed with Lyme disease in 1993. Doctors suspect she contracted the disease in 1977 from a tick bite she got while working in Tennessee and Kentucky as a naturalist.

She and her husband, Larry, have been farming their 366-acre farm in Washington County in Southeast Iowa since 1980. They run small cow/calf and goat operations, a Christmas tree nursery and a dried-flower business, but her roles on the farm and as a naturalist have been cut short.

Cuddeback no longer works as a part-time naturalist for Washington County, a job she had for 13 years. She helps Larry on the farm when needed if her health permits. Everyday is painful.

"The seriousness of this disease is greatly underestimated," said Cuddeback, president of the Iowa Lyme Disease Association and board member for Emerging Infections in the Central States.

She has been working to spread the word about ticks and Lyme disease's potential in Iowa.

As spring brings warm, wet weather, tick season takes off. Farmers and others working or enjoying the outdoors, need to beware.

"Anybody who is having outside contact, particularly in woody or grassy areas, should beware of ticks," said Kelley Donham, University of Iowa occupation health specialist.

He believes farmers, because they often use equipment or are in crop fields when they are outdoors, are less likely to encounter the black-legged ticks.

Cuddeback said farmers should be on the look-out for ticks during activities such as checking fences, walking in pastures or working with livestock.

Wayne Rowley, an Iowa State University entomologist, has been documenting the occurrence of black-legged tick populations in Iowa from ticks people send in from across the state.

Last year, of the 550 ticks sent to the ISU lab, 198, or 36 percent, were black-legged ticks. Of the black-legged ticks, 22 tested positive for the bacterium that causes Lyme disease, Rowley said.

Of the 22 ticks, 13 came from Allamakee County in Northeast Iowa. The others came from Buchanan, Clayton, Johnson, Louisa, Marshall, Muscatine and Winneshiek counties.

In the Midwest, Iowa has a smaller population of black-legged ticks and fewer Lyme disease cases than neighboring Minnesota and Wisconsin, Donham said.

"Most people (with Lyme disease) have spent time or have lived somewhere else and have come back here," Donham said.

The disease was originally discovered in Lyme, Conn. Connecticut, other northeastern states, Minnesota and Wisconsin account for 95 percent of all recorded Lyme disease cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.

Cuddeback said she has been contacted by about 250 people in Iowa who have been diagnosed or are questioning whether they have the disease.

"It is not just on the East Coast. It is in Iowa, too. We know ticks don't stop at the border," she commented.

Diagnosis is difficult because tests are only 60 percent reliable indicators of the disease.

Kevin Teale, Iowa Department of Public Health communication director, admits, "The test isn't fool-proof, and we are working on that."

He said the health department has been documenting the number of confirmed Lyme disease cases in Iowa since 1989. There has been one case reported so far this year and 45 reported last year. In 2003, a record 72 cases were reported, but most years there are around 20 cases, he said.

In any case, experts recommend removing ticks as soon as possible by grasping the tick closest to where it is attached using a tweezers and pulling it out gently. Do not twist because this could cause the part of the tick to remain embedded in the skin.

"The best thing to do is save the tick. If you have a bulls-eye rash send the tick in or contact your physician and they should be able to ascertain if it is a deer tick bite," Rowley said.

Ticks should be put in a zip-lock bag and sent to: Lyme Disease Project, Department of Entomology, 440 Science II, Iowa State University, Ames IA 50011-3222.

If caught early, Lyme disease can be beat and symptoms can be lessened with the use of antibiotics.

But, a good rule of thumb is to beware of ticks when spending time outdoors.