Tick-Borne Zoonoses in the United States: Persistent and Emerging Threats to Human Health

Abstract In the United States, ticks transmit the greatest diversity of arthropod-borne pathogens and are responsible for the most cases of all vector-borne diseases. In recent decades, the number of reported cases of notifiable tick-borne diseases has steadily increased, geographic distributions of...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:ILAR journal 2017-12, Vol.58 (3), p.319-335
Main Authors: Eisen, Rebecca J, Kugeler, Kiersten J, Eisen, Lars, Beard, Charles B, Paddock, Christopher D
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Humans
Tick-Borne Diseases - epidemiology
Ticks - parasitology
United States - epidemiology
Zoonoses - epidemiology
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Summary:Abstract In the United States, ticks transmit the greatest diversity of arthropod-borne pathogens and are responsible for the most cases of all vector-borne diseases. In recent decades, the number of reported cases of notifiable tick-borne diseases has steadily increased, geographic distributions of many ticks and tick-borne diseases have expanded, and new tick-borne disease agents have been recognized. In this review, we (1) describe the known disease agents associated with the most commonly human-biting ixodid ticks, (2) review the natural histories of these ticks and their associated pathogens, (3) highlight spatial and temporal changes in vector tick distributions and tick-borne disease occurrence in recent decades, and (4) identify knowledge gaps and barriers to more effective prevention of tick-borne diseases. We describe 12 major tick-borne diseases caused by 15 distinct disease agents that are transmitted by the 8 most commonly human-biting ixodid ticks in the United States. Notably, 40% of these pathogens were described within the last two decades. Our assessment highlights the importance of animal studies to elucidate how tick-borne pathogens are maintained in nature, as well as advances in molecular detection of pathogens which has led to the discovery of several new tick-borne disease agents.
ISSN:1084-2020
1930-6180
DOI:10.1093/ilar/ilx005