DALLAS - Two Texas medical researchers have received a grant to research conflicting reports about the infectious nature and causative agent of Southern-tick Associated Rash Illness in Texas and other states.
For years, Texas doctors were slow to diagnose the Lyme-disease type infection because they were unable to detect the spiral-shaped bacteria that cause Lyme disease in patients, animals or ticks from Texas and neighboring states.
Lyme disease is so named because it was first identified in the 1970s in Lyme, Conn. One estimate puts the national number of Lyme disease cases at over 200,000 per year. Many of them are not diagnosed or properly treated.
How STARI equates to Lyme disease is yet to be determined, but the symptoms are virtually identical - a bull's-eye shaped rash associated with a tick bite, followed by fever, headache, fatigue and skin rash. Symptoms can spread to the joints, heart and nervous system and become debilitating.
This information is particularly important right now because 400,000 Texas dove hunters are poised to take to the field in September, many of them ignorant about the potentially deadly tick-vectored disease and how to protect themselves from it.
In October, archery deer hunters and squirrel hunters will bolster the number of hunters afield. The tick threat is temporarily resolved with the cold weather that renders ticks inactive, but cold weather may never come to southern parts of Texas. In South Texas, it's possible to encounter a tick or a rattlesnake 365 days a year.
Hikers, campers, ranchers, farmers, bird watchers and other nature lovers are likewise at risk. And about that aforementioned rattlesnake. You do need to keep an eye out for rattlers during dove season or anytime you're outdoors in warm weather. The truth is, rattlesnakes don't want to bite you, although several hundred people get bitten each year.
The snakebites are defensive and frequently happen when someone is agitating a snake for the thrill factor. Otherwise, a snake bites when it feels threatened - usually when it gets stepped on or when someone reaches for a dove that's fallen next to the snake.
Ticks, on the other hand, are trying to bite you. That's their job. They suck blood from warm-blooded donors, including humans. Most modern Texans do not personally know anyone who's been bitten by a snake, but anyone who's spent much time outdoors has been bitten by a tick.
There is a nearly foolproof way to prevent tick bites. For 15 years, I've been using a chemical called permethrin and haven't had a single tick bite. I've been writing about permethrin since I first heard about it. It was adapted for military use in jungle warfare.
It's amazing how many knowledgeable sportsmen still give me a blank look when I mentioned permethrin, although it's available through any well-stocked sporting goods or hardware store where you'd expect to buy insect repellent.
The brands I'm familiar with are Permanone and Sawyer. Permethrin is the active ingredient. You use the spray can of permethrin to treat clothing. Do not apply it to your skin.
Before the hunt, spray your pants, shirt and socks with permethrin and allow the chemical to dry completely before wearing. Apply permethrin according to directions. One thorough application will retain its effectiveness through multiple washings.
Aside from the itch and aggravation of ticks (and chiggers), these insects carry some very nasty diseases.
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(c) 2008, The Dallas Morning News. Distributed by Mclatchy-Tribune News Service.