Relationship Between Tick Activity, Tick-Borne Diseases, Cognitive and Affective Risk Assessment in Peri-domestic Areas

Are you ready for the tick season? Spring dynamic of tick diversity and density in urban and suburban areas

BACKGROUND

Occurrence of tick-borne diseases (TBD) is often seasonal and associated with seasonal activity of appropriate tick vectors. As seasonal activity of ticks differs, the risk of contracting particular TBD should change between and within seasons. It is of key importance to monitor seasonal dynamic of tick vectors, especially in human-associated habitats. The aim of the current study was to compare activity and density of Ixodes ricinus and Dermacentor reticulatus during spring season in urban and suburban habitats.

METHODS

Systematic tick collection by dragging was performed every 1-2 weeks between mid-March and mid-June 2021 at 15 sites: 6 in Warsaw (urban areas) and 9 in suburban areas.

RESULTS

During 178 field collections of ticks, including 131 collections from urban sites and 47 collections from rural areas, 738 ticks (385 adult D. reticulatus and 353 I. ricinus) were collected. Dermacentor reticulatus ticks are found from the beginning of spring, peaking in April and May, and I. ricinus ticks are present from early April, peaking in April and May as well. I. ricinus were abundant in rural and urban areas, including botanical garden and forest kindergarten area. Dermacentor reticulatus were found in urban fallow lands but were not collected in parks. These ticks were abundant in fallow lands, meadow, and mixed forest. DNA of B. burgdorferi s.l. and Rickettsia spp. was identified in ticks from urban areas.

CONCLUSIONS

Due to the marked differences in spring dynamic of D. reticulatus and I. ricinus, the sampling effort should be repeated at least three times per season for accurate estimation of tick occurrence (presence/absence) and density. Due to "exchange" of tick species, total tick density remains high through the spring season of activity, which may result in high transmission of tick-borne pathogens (TBPs). Tick densities are dependent on the habitat type and may be low in well-managed agricultural habitats (crop fields, pastures, chicken yard), but high in semi-natural habitats (fallow lands, rural forests). Numerous I. ricinus populations can be maintained in urban green areas such as botanical gardens. Ticks from urban areas can serve as vectors of important TBPs (B. burgdorferi s.l., Rickettsia spp.).

Preventing tick-bites among children in Indiana, USA: An analysis of factors associated with parental protective behaviors

Despite evidence to the effect that there is low parental adoption of tick-bite personal protective behavior (PPB) for their children - a population at high risk for tick exposure, very limited information is available on factors associated with parental adoption of PPB. The objective of this study was to identify the most significant factors associated with parental adoption of tick-bite PPB on behalf of a child or children at risk of tick encounters. A cross-section of parents in Indiana, USA whose child had spent time outdoors in tick habitat during the summer were recruited from representative online panels maintained by Qualtrics. Binary logistic regression was used to model determinants of five tick-bite PPBs. Our results revealed that the application of tick repellent (89 %, n = 718) followed by conducting a tick check of the child's body soon after returning from the outdoors (84 %, n = 676) were the PPBs most frequently adopted by parents. Conversely, tucking one's shirt into pants and pants into socks was the least frequently adopted PPB (48 %, n = 386). Compared to other factors evaluated in logistic regression models, parents who reported implementing one or more residential tick control practices were significantly more likely to adopt nearly all five tick-bite PPBs for their children. Additionally, parents who were more worried about their health due to ticks and reported being more likely to avoid the outdoors because of ticks were more likely to adopt at least three PPBs on behalf of their children. To ensure children can most safely engage in outdoor activity, identifying the factors associated with parental adoption of tick-bite preventive behaviors represents an important mechanism in the prevention of tick-borne diseases.