Tick season expected to be hazardous in northeast US: experts

NEW YORK (PIX11) – This year’s tick season in New York State is expected to be dangerous, experts are warning.

Emergency room visits for ticks are the highest in the northeast this year, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The risk of ticks is high across all of New York this year except in the Adirondack region, according to the state's Department of Health. The Hudson Valley has a tick risk score of 2.1, while Long Island’s is 1.6, an interactive map showed.

That's not the only thing people should be worried about – Dr. Saravanan Thangamani, of the Upstate Tick Testing Laboratory, said that ticks are carrying more pathogens aside from Lyme disease.

“Based on the data, it is clear that Babesia-positive and Anaplasma-positive ticks are also emerging in addition to Lyme disease-positive ticks,” he said in a news release from SUNY Upstate Medical University.

One tick-bourne disease, babesiosis, is spreading throughout the U.S. A study from the Entomological Society of America said the illness, which has always existed in the northeast, is becoming more common in New Jersey and the south.

The disease infects red blood cells and can cause severe illness in vulnerable individuals, according to the CDC. The symptoms include fever, chills, sweats, nausea, fatigue and body aches.

People who visit tick-prone areas should check for the bugs in all joint areas, the belly button, behind the ears and knees, between the legs, around the waist, in the hairline and other skin folds, according to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

To remove a tick, use point-tipped tweezers to grab the head of the insect and gently pull it off. Do not grab the body, handle the tick with your bare hands or squash it, health officials warned.

Learn how to properly remove a tick by clicking here.