Potentially fatal tick-borne disease found in state
The first case this year of a potentially fatal tick-borne disease has been identified in Connecticut, officials say.
A man in his 50s from Windham County was confirmed to have the Powassan virus after being hospitalized with a central nervous system illness, officials said.
The unidentified patient was initially hospitalized but has since been discharged to recover at home, according to the state Department of Public Health. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that a blood sample from the patient had antibodies associated with the illness.
Powassan is considered rare, but usually goes undetected. Most patients infected with the disease experience no symptoms or mild, flu-like illness. DPH said in a release that severe cases may begin with fever, vomiting, headache or weakness. It then can rapidly progress to confusion, loss of coordination, difficulty speaking or seizures.
One in 10 cases of severe Powassan are fatal. About half of patients with severe Powassan will have longterm health problems associated with the disease.
DPH Commissioner Manisha Juthani said during a Wednesday interview it is unknown how widespread Powassan is in Connecticut.
“It's not like we're doing surveillance studies of Powassan virus, in the sense that many people who get tick bites might be completely asymptomatic from it,” she said. “We don't even know they had Powassan, it came and went, and that's it.”
“What we do know, is people who present with Powassan tend to be pretty sick,” Juthani said.
Powassan has no medical treatment, but central nervous system issues sometimes give physicians a clue that the virus may be at play.
“If somebody comes in with a central nervous system disease and has something where you're concerned about encephalitis, you're going to test those people for Powassan virus, and those people are more likely much more sick,” Juthani said.
Juthani urged preventive measures.
“The identification of a Connecticut resident with Powassan virus associated illness emphasizes the need to take actions to prevent tick bites from now through the late fall,” she said in a release. “Using insect repellent, avoiding areas where ticks are likely, and checking carefully for ticks after being outside can reduce the chance of you or your children being infected with this virus.”