Flu/tick seasons converge this year

Warm, spring-like weather hasn't chased the flu away, but it has awakened ticks for another, annual health threat.

Public Health nurse Elaine Sedlack warned Tuesday that as flu continues to spread in Montana, the risk of tick-borne illnesses was jump-started by the lack of snow and unseasonably warm weather.

"We're still seeing quite a bit of flu in middle-aged people," Sedlack said.

She traces that to people forgoing immunizations due to the vaccine shortage last October. Sedlack said the Centers for Disease Control still recommends that people get vaccinated because of the extended flu season this year.

"We still have some available for anyone," she said.

Flu symptoms include headache, fever, dry cough, muscle aches and fatigue. She said people have commented that this is the sickest they have gotten in years from the flu.

"In the last week, Montana went from regional [flu infections] to widespread," she said.

Sedlack said 20 flu cases were verified in the Flathead last week. Of those, nine were identified as type A and 11 were type B.

While few schools experienced lots of flu absences this season, a food-borne gastrointestinal illness hit hard throughout the Flathead. The virus, which remains unidentified, has slowed its spread through the Flathead.

The early tick season fills the health threat left by the virus.

"It's very early but they [ticks] are here," Sedlack said. "We had one come in yesterday."

Unlike last year, health officials don't want the public to bring in ticks they find attached to their skin. The state has completed the collection phase for a study of a potential new tick-borne disease in Montana.

The state issued a tick alert Tuesday. Todd Damrow, epidemiologist with the Department of Public Health and Human Services, said diseases follow the emergence of ticks.

"Ticks are usually active from late March until July, when dryness and heat finally force them to take cover on the ground," Damrow said. "But this year they're out earlier than usual."

Ticks feed by embedding their mouth into a host's skin and sucking its blood. Because of the blood connection, these parasites spread diseases such as Rocky Mountain spotted fever.

According to Damrow, other diseases spread by ticks in Montana include Colorado tick fever, tularemia and Q fever. He said no record exists of a Montana tick spreading Lyme disease.

Ticks range from the size of a pencil point to pea-sized. Shaped like pumpkin seeds, ticks vary from brown to reddish brown.

People need to keep an eye out for ticks while pursuing outdoor activities in mountains, forests or sagebrush plains. The parasites board human and animal hosts as they brush up against vegetation.

Hikers, fishermen and others at risk should inspect themselves for ticks after a trip. If one is found, Sedlack said to use tweezers to grasp the tick firmly but pull gently upward and outward.

"Don't twist," she said. "Look to make sure you got the head off as well. Disinfect the site."

If the head remains attached, she said the tick victim should seek help from a medical provider to extract it.

Not every tick remains attached for a person to find it. Sedlack said that people should know the symptoms of Rocky Mountain Spotted fever as a precaution.

"It's fairly rare - there may be a case or two every year," she said. "But it can be deadly."

Symptoms of Rocky Mountain spotted fever may take as long as two weeks to develop. Initial signs of the disease include sudden onset of fever, headache and muscle pain followed by a rash.

Sedlack urges prevention to avoid tick-borne infections. Recommendations include wearing clothing that covers the body, such as long-sleeved shirts tucked into pants, and using insect repellents on clothing.

Reporter Candace Chase may be reached at 758-4436 or by e-mail at cchase@dailyinterlake.com