The ticks you may find in your state, and the diseases they can carry

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(NEXSTAR) — It’s been a gnarly year for ticks already in the U.S., with hospital visits spurred by tick bites reaching highs we haven’t seen in years. What that tick may spread to you, however, can vary based on where you live.

Lyme disease is likely the tick-borne disease you’re most familiar with, and rightfully so. There were more than 89,000 cases of Lyme disease reported to the CDC in 2023 alone, though health officials say recent estimates put that number as high as 476,000. The CDC cautions that some patients included in the higher estimates may have been treated for suspected lyme disease, but may not have actually had it.

Nearly every state has reported at least one case of Lyme disease, though the majority have been detected in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and throughout New England. The disease is primarily spread by the blacklegged tick (otherwise known as the deer tick) and the Western blacklegged tick.

Blacklegged ticks are capable of spreading multiple diseases, including Powassan virus, anaplasmosis, babesiosis, and hard tick relapsing fever.

Anaplasmosis, caused by the bacteria A. phagocytophilum, can be deadly if left untreated, according to the CDC. Babesiosis causes flu-like symptoms in some people. While the blacklegged ticks can be found in many states, cases of both are more commonly reported in the Northeast and upper Midwest.

Powassan virus, which is on the rise in the U.S., has been reported in at least one resident in Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin. Three states have reported more than 80 total cases of Powassan: Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Massachusetts.

Receiving more attention as of late is alpha-gal syndrome, which can make you allergic to red meat and other animal products. The tick responsible for spreading the condition, the lone star tick, has been expanding its range. Every state in the continental U.S. has had at least one suspected case of alpha-gal syndrome, a study published in 2023 determined.

The lone star tick can also spread Heartland virus, with symptoms including fever, headache, nausea, muscle and joint pain, and diarrhea. While not a nationally notifiable disease, cases of Heartland virus have been reported from Nebraska and Oklahoma east to Virginia and North Carolina, as well as New York, Pennsylvania, and Georgia. Bourbon virus, a rare condition first detected in Bourbon County, Kansas, in 2014, is also believed to be caused by the lone star tick. Cases have been reported in the Midwest, the East Coast, and the South, according to the CDC.

The lone star tick and the blacklegged tick can spread ehrlichiosis, which can become severe if left untreated. Early symptoms, setting in during the first five days of illness, include fever, chills, headache, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, a loss of appetite, confusion, and, commonly among children, a rash.

While some tick-borne diseases are spread only by one tick species, Rocky Mountain spotted fever can be spread by three: the American dog tick, the brown dog tick, and the Rocky Mountain wood tick. Because every state in the continental U.S. is known to have at least one of those tick species (brown dog ticks have also been found in Hawaii), Rocky Mountain spotted fever can – and does – occur throughout the country.

Also reported in all states is tularemia, which, when spread by a tick, typically causes skin ulcers and swelling of the lymph glands. However, the disease can be transmitted by deer flies, contaminated water, contact with infected animals, laboratory exposure, and by breathing in contaminated aerosols or agricultural and landscaping dust, according to the CDC.

Two regional species, the Gulf Coast tick and the Pacific Coast tick, are known to spread Rickettsia parkeri rickettsiosis and Pacific Coast tick fever, respectively. Both conditions are considered to be less severe than Rocky Mountain spotted fever.

Despite its name, Colorado tick fever – spread by the Rocky Mountain wood tick – has been detected in several Western states. Cases believed to be acquired locally have been reported in Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado, CDC data through 2022 show.

Hoping to avoid ticks altogether? You may want to relocate to Alaska – the state has no known naturally occurring populations of the aforementioned ticks, according to the CDC.

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