Illinois Resident Tests Positive for Tick-Borne Heartland Virus

The Heartland virus is spread by the lone star tick. (AOL/Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

An older person who lives in rural Jackson County has become the third individual to test positive for the tick-borne Heartland virus in Illinois since 2018.

The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) said in a press release on Aug. 23 that the older individual had “recently” tested positive for the virus, for which there is currently no preventative vaccine or treatment.

The latest case marks the third time an individual has been diagnosed with the virus in Illinois after two cases were reported in 2018 in Kankakee County and Williamson County.

Over 50 cases of the virus have, however, been reported in the Midwest and Southern United States since 2009, when the virus was first identified after two Missouri farmers who had been bitten by ticks were hospitalized with high fevers, low counts of white blood cells and platelets, muscle pains, and other symptoms.

Most people who have been diagnosed with the disease in the United States became ill between May and September, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The Heartland virus is an emerging infectious disease that is likely spread by the lone star tick, also known as Amblyomma americanum, which is indigenous to much of the eastern United States and Mexico.

Lone star ticks are mostly found in woodlands with dense undergrowth.

In March, scientists from Emory University who are researching the Heartland virus discovered it was circulating in lone star ticks in central Georgia, providing new insight into how the virus may evolve and spread geographically and from one organism to another.

Precautions Should Be Taken

They collected samples of nearly 10,000 juvenile and adult lone star ticks across the state between 2018 and 2019 and found the Heartland virus was prevalent among the population, with roughly one out of every 2,000 of the specimens collected from the areas carrying it.

Symptoms of the Heartland virus include fever, diarrhea, fatigue, muscle or joint pain, headache, nausea, and a loss of appetite, according to the CDC. Typically, most people become sick roughly two weeks after they have been bitten by a tick.

Almost all individuals who have been diagnosed with the Heartland virus have had to be hospitalized because of their symptoms and some who had underlying health conditions have died, although most people infected have fully recovered.

Currently, there is no treatment for the virus but doctors can treat some of the symptoms.

Ticks are commonly found on the tips of grasses and shrubs and will typically wait for a human or animal to walk by before attaching to their skin. They then feeds on the blood for a few days before dropping off once they’ve had enough.

“As people continue to enjoy summer activities like hiking and camping, it is important to take precautions against ticks,” said IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra in a statement on Tuesday. “Remember to wear insect repellent when in tick habitats and check for ticks immediately afterwards.”