Lyme disease is one of the most prevalent communicable diseases in the country, yet before people can be treated for it they have to know they have it.
That’s why the work happening inside a University of Massachusetts Amherst laboratory is so important, especially at this time of year, when tick season swings into high gear. Scientists at the Laboratory of Medical Zoology test ticks that people find on themselves or their pets for diseases such as Lyme.
The laboratory announced last week that it is partnering with about two dozen towns in the state to offer discounted tick testing that can help diagnose tick-borne diseases.
This is significant because the number of confirmed Lyme cases, estimated at about 30,000 by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, is only about one-tenth of actual cases. In other words, people and their animals likely have Lyme disease and don’t know it.
Testing can help identify some of those cases. But it’s not just Lyme. The testing has shown that people are being exposed to more tick-borne diseases than previously thought, including babesia and anaplasma.
Since its founding in 2006, LMZ has tested nearly 18,000 ticks. About 25 percent of those tested positive for Lyme disease. Most of the testing, however, has taken place since 2014 thanks to innovative partnerships designed to reduce test costs for residents in many cities and towns.
The LMZ tests normally cost $50 per tick, but the partnership announced last week will reduce that fee to between $10 and $15 for individuals who live in two dozen towns across the state. A grant from Cape Cod Healthcare to Cape Cod Cooperative Extension is making up the difference for 100 tests in each of the towns, including six in Franklin County: Charlemont, Conway, Hawley, Heath, Leyden and Shelburne. The latest grant comes on the heels of a one-time state subsidy that paid for 100 ticks to be tested from each of 32 participating towns. That program ended last year with each town taking part at the maximum level. Not only is the testing critical for treatment plans, but the thousands of ticks sent to the lab from around the country are also helping scientists determine where ticks are found, what diseases they carry and how they spread.
The information is shared with doctors, town health departments and civic organizations, and used to educate people on how to avoid tick bites in the first place.
No Hampshire County communities are included in this grant program (or the one that ended in 2015), but we encourage city and town leaders to consider joining the effort. A $3,000 commitment is a small price to pay as a public health service.