Tick Bites Sending More People to the ER — Here’s How to Prevent Them

If you’ve come across more ticks on your outdoor adventures this summer, it’s not surprising — experts say it’s shaping up to be a bad tick season.

“We are seeing a dramatic increase, or some people would say an explosion, in the number of ticks encountered by humans,” says Saravanan Thangamani, PhD, a professor of microbiology and immunology at the SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, New York. Dr. Thangamani also serves as the director of the Upstate Tick Testing Laboratory, which tests ticks submitted by New York residents.

Thangamani says that the lab has seen twice as many ticks as last year. His colleagues around the country are seeing a similar increase in ticks, he adds.