Ticks are active above freezing temperatures, and other tick borne infections can be deadly (so be careful outside at this time of the year, especially with leaf litter). This article by a PhD student at the University of Maryland discusses three common TBD's: rickettsia, Anaplasma and Babesia and why we need to stay vigilant. Rickettsia and Anaplasma can be effectively treated with doxycycline early in the illness after a tick-bite, but there is no universally effective treatment for Babesia (we are looking into getting an IND to test clofazamine, recently published to have efficacy).
Also, other tick-borne infections are not discussed here, including soft tick and hard tick relapsing fever (Borrelia miyamotoi), viral infections (Powassan), or tularemia. Chapters 5 and 6 of 'How Can I Get Better' (St Martins Press, 2017) discuss these infections in more detail for those who want to learn more about their clinical manifestations and treatments.
