What you need to know about risk of Lyme disease in Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan medical professionals are warning people about the risk of Lyme disease, even though the likelihood of contracting it here is very low. Here’s what you need to know.

Q What causes Lyme disease?

A A bite from the black-legged tick, also known as the deer tick. It’s reddish-brown and much smaller that the wood tick (also known as the American dog tick) common to Saskatchewan. The black-legged tick can survive until frost hits. The tick needs 24 hours or more to infect a person’s blood stream after biting.

Q What are the symptoms of Lyme disease?

A Symptoms can include fever, chills, fatigue, swollen lymph nodes, muscle and joint pain, and headache. Most people infected will see a rash at the site of the tick bite. Treatment requires antibiotics; without them, symptoms can worsen to include dizziness, mental confusion, abnormal heartbeat and nervous system disorders.

Q What is the likelihood you will catch Lyme disease?

A Not very. Since 2008, there have been only three cases of Lyme disease in Saskatchewan. The province has collected more than 21,000 ticks since 2008, 50 of which were black-legged ticks. Of those 50, only four were infected with Borrelia burghdorferi, the organism that causes Lyme disease.

But with the black-legged tick gaining a presence in Manitoba, Dr. Denise Werker, Saskatchewan’s deputy chief medical health officer, is concerned the species could migrate here and establish a population.

Lyme disease is more prevalent in other parts of Canada. Risk for Lyme disease in Saskatchewan may grow years from now from migratory birds and animals.

Q What is the testing process for Lyme disease?

A Lyme disease can be diagnosed with a simple blood test, said Patrick O’Byrne, executive director of the Saskatchewan Disease Control Laboratory. Tests are confirmed at Winnipeg’s National Microbiology Lab.

Q Are there other tick-related diseases you should be worrying about?

A Yes and no. The more prevalent tick species in the province, the wood tick, can carry diseases like tularemia, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, anaplasmosis and babesiosis, which share some symptoms with Lyme disease.

“Those diseases are very rare in Saskatchewan, but there is a concern that ticks carry disease in general,” said Werker.

She encourages people to take precautions in grassy or wooded areas: Wear long-sleeved clothing and use insect repellent containing Deet.