From the Los Angeles Times:
Wednesday, March 29, 2000
Lyme Disease Detected in Ticks at Will Rogers Park
PACIFIC PALISADES--Health officials are warning hikers at Will
Rogers State Historic Park to be wary of ticks this spring, because
researchers have found a group of ticks there that tested positive for
the bacterial illness Lyme disease.
People who play or work in the park or in the Santa Monica
Mountains should be extra watchful for the ticks, which dwell in tall
grass along trails and attach themselves to animals and humans, said
Robert Saviskas, of the Los Angeles County West Vector Control District.
Most cases of Lyme disease are contracted in spring and early summer.
Ticks that carry the disease were first discovered locally in
Malibu State Park in 1999, and researchers say the infected creatures
now appear to occupy a 22-mile stretch of the Santa Monica Mountains,
from Malibu to the Palisades. Saviskas said it isn't clear whether
infected ticks are spreading or whether they had always existed in these
areas but are only recently being discovered because of increased
testing.
In the latest testing, ticks with Lyme disease were collected along
the park's Betty Rogers Trail. A total of 274 ticks were collected, and
divided into groups of 10. One of those groups tested positive for the
Lyme disease bacteria, Saviskas said.
Early symptoms of Lyme disease include a spreading rash, fever,
headaches, and muscle and joint pains. Later symptoms of the disease
include arthritis and nervous system disorders. People with medical
questions may contact the Los Angeles County Acute Communicable Disease
unit at (213) 240-7941.
Lyme Disease Detected in Ticks at Will Rogers Park
http://www.latimes.com/news/state/20000329/t000029627.html
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