A rare and potentially fatal tick-borne illness currently spreading across the United States can be traced back to a 1958 case involving a young boy on a farm. The disease, known as Powassan virus, was named for the Ontario town near where it was first discovered. At the time of his death, Lincoln Byers, a 4-year-old living … Read more
Scientists are warning of a new virus discovered in China that spreads to humans through tick bites, with the potential to cause problems in the brain. Wetland virus (WELV) was initially detected in a 61-year-old man who reported being bit by ticks at a park in a large wetland in northern China. The unidentified patient … Read more
A disease so unusual that many doctors can’t diagnose it has emerged as a serious threat — and Long Island’s Suffolk County is the nation’s epicenter. Alpha-gal syndrome, sometimes called AGS, is spread by bites from the lone star tick. It causes people to have a violent reaction to red meat and dairy and about … Read more