As the world focuses effort, energy and media attention on the Zika Virus, Lyme disease in Worcester Mass continues to be a growing threat. Lyme disease is transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected deer tick. While the data is not yet been released for this season, we have heard from our clients, and we’ve seen for ourselves that the population of deer ticks is even worse than last year.
The CDC documented 3,646 confirmed cases of Lyme in Massachusetts in 2014, second only to Pennsylvania. Those numbers are believed to be much greater with many cases going undiagnosed or misdiagnosed. There is also a great expectation that 2015 will have proven to be much worse when the final data is released.
The Lyme Disease Epidemic in Massachusetts
In July of 2015, the state of Massachusetts declared Lyme disease an epidemic across the state. While some areas are affected more than others, most of the state faces some risk. As reported in October by the Boston Globe, there has been a sharp increase in Lyme disease cases in Worcester County in recent years. Confirmed by MDPH, in 2014 alone there were 421 confirmed Lyme cases in Worcester along with 226 probable cases of Lyme disease in Worcester. Only 4 counties in the state of Massachusetts have more Lyme disease than Worcester.
Lyme Disease Prevention in Worcester Mass
While we don’t want to alarm you about the dangers of Lyme disease in Worcester, we do want to inform you so that you can avoid Lyme and recognize it if it does occur. Prevention is the best medicine, but early treatment is crucial once infection occurs.
Don’t forget, lowering the population of deer ticks in your Worcester yard is as easy as following the 6 Cs of tick control.
For the best protection against deer ticks on your property, Mosquito Squad of Worcester offers tick mist that will eliminate 85-90% of the ticks in your yard.