Tick with bacteria that causes Anaplasmosis identified by MLHU

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A new disease has been identified present in a tick by the Middlesex-London Health Unit (MLHU) – it identified a tick in the region with Anaplasma phagocytophilum bacteria this month for the first time.

Anaplasmosis is caused by the bacteria – usually spread by the black legged tick, symptoms include fever, chills, headache, nausea and more. Severe illness is possible in those that are older or that have weakened immune systems.

You can protect yourself from ticks by wearing light coloured clothes to make it easier to spot ticks, wearing long pants and shoes, and tucking your pants into your socks when walking through grassy areas, checking yourself for ticks, applying DEET based bug repellent, and showering as soon as you get home.

Blacklegged ticks are also known to transmit the bacteria that causes Lyme disease, and the parasite that causes babesiosis – both of which have been found in local ticks this year.