Ticks biting humans in the Brazilian savannah: Attachment sites and exposure risk in relation to species, life stage and season

• Published in: Ticks and tick-borne diseases 2020-03, Vol.11 (2), p.101328, Article 101328
• Main Authors: Szabó, Matias Pablo Juan, Martins, Thiago Fernandes, Barbieri, Amália Regina Mar, Costa, Francisco Borges, Soares, Herbert Sousa, Tolesano-Pascoli, Graziela Virginia, Torga, Khelma, Saraiva, Danilo Gonçalves, Ramos, Vanessa do Nascimento, Osava, Carolina Fonseca, de Castro, Marcio Botelho, Labruna, Marcelo Bahia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Attachment site; Brazil; Brazil - epidemiology; Cerrado; Female; Grassland; Human; Humans; Ixodidae - growth & development; Ixodidae - physiology; Larva - growth & development; Larva - physiology; Male; Nymph - growth & development; Nymph - physiology; Prevalence; Seasons; Species Specificity; Tick; Tick Bites - epidemiology; Tick Bites - parasitology
• ISSN: 1877-959X; 1877-9603
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2019.101328

Information about human tick bites in Brazil is mostly anecdotal. Published information is typically restricted to single tick infestation episodes and does not address human exposure occurring on a daily basis in natural, rural, or green urban areas. We present a comprehensive 2-yr study on human parasitism during a broad survey on ticks within a Brazilian savannah reserve. Overall, 439 tick bites were recorded from the following species: Amblyomma sculptum (n = 331 bites), Amblyomma parvum (n = 64), Amblyomma auricularium (n = 3), Rhipicephalus microplus (n = 2), Dermacentor nitens (n = 1) and 38 Amblyomma spp. ticks. Nymphs accounted for most tick bites (n = 292, 66.5 % of all bites) and these were overwhelmingly A. sculptum (92.8 % of nymphal bites). The main adult tick biting humans was A. parvum (n = 61, 50 % of all adult tick bites) followed closely by A. sculptum (n = 58, 47.5 % of all adult tick bites). Winter was the season with the highest percentage of tick bites (39.7 % of all bites), followed by spring (32.4 %); summer (18.9 %) and autumn (9 %). Amblyomma sculptum adult bites peaked in summer whereas nymphal bites occurred primarily in winter and spring. Amblyomma parvum adult bites peaked in spring and summer. The most common tick attachment sites included the waist, legs and belly, but A. parvum adults were recorded from the head of humans as well. A noteworthy observation was the lack of human parasitism by Amblyomma triste, the third most prevalent species in the environment. This tick species is a frequent human biter in both Uruguay and Argentina where it transmits a pathogen, Rickettsia parkeri, to humans.