As summer approaches, health officials in West Virginia are sounding the alarm about a growing threat to outdoor enthusiasts: tick-borne illnesses. According to reports from the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources and the Bureau for Public Health, Lyme Disease remains the most common tick-borne illness in the state, but cases of Anaplasmosis and Babesiosis have also increased.
State Epidemiologist Shannon McBee warns that early detection is key to preventing disease. “Most tickborne pathogens take hours to transmit,” she says. “Making sure folks have appropriate protection and doing simple skin checks can be the difference between just pulling a tick off and a serious illness.”
Anaplasmosis cases have risen from 17 in 2023 to 29 last year, with complications including respiratory failure, organ failure, and thrombocytopenia. Babesiosis, also spread by blacklegged ticks, has seen four of eight total cases since 2017 occur in 2024.
Health professionals say that tick-borne illnesses can mimic malaria on blood smears and have serious complications, such as heart attacks and acute respiratory distress syndrome. Dr. Michael Kilkenny, CEO of the Cabell County Health Department, recommends seeking medical treatment within 36 hours of a suspected tick bite and carefully removing the tick using tweezers or a specific tool.
McBee attributes the rise in tick-borne illnesses to West Virginia’s unique geography and climate, as well as increased awareness and knowledge among health professionals. Climate change has also led to warmer winters and an expanded habitat for ticks, making them more active during the summer months.
The concern is heightened by the fact that these diseases are relatively new to the state and their case counts are doubling. “Many of these diseases we haven’t seen in West Virginia before,” McBee says. “So, when you see case counts double even though they’re relatively new, these are emerging infections, and that’s always concerning.”
Source: https://wvmetronews.com/2025/05/21/health-professionals-say-that-tickborne-illnesses-on-the-rise-in-the-mountain-state