The CDC Says Minnesota Now Leads Nation in Cases of Rare and Deadly Tick Virus
While Minnesota’s high-risk map highlights tick-borne illnesses like Lyme, anaplasmosis, and babesiosis, there’s another, more dangerous threat that’s been creeping in quietly: The Powassan virus.
According to the CDC, the Powassan virus is spread through the bite of an infected tick, usually the blacklegged tick, the same one responsible for spreading Lyme disease. Unlike Lyme, which takes at least 24 hours to transmit from tick to human, Powassan can transmit in as little as 15 minutes after an infected tick attaches to a person, and there’s currently no vaccine or cure.
The CDC says it will take about 1 week to 1 month to show symptoms after being infected, but many people won’t show symptoms at all.
Early symptoms can feel like your typical summer bug with a fever, headache, vomiting, fatigue, but things can turn serious fast. In some serious cases, the CDC says the virus causes swelling in the brain (encephalitis) or in the membranes around the brain and spinal cord (meningitis).
Severe cases can lead to confusion, seizures, difficulty speaking, and even death. 10 percent of people with severe Powassan cases die, according to the CDC. The good news is that the virus cannot be spread from person to person.
Read More: Minnesota Leads U.S. in Rare, Deadly Tickborne Powassan Virus | https://krocnews.com/the-cdc-says-minnesota-now-leads-nation-in-cases-of-rare-and-deadly-tick-virus/?utm_source=tsmclip&utm_medium=referral