The silent threat of ticks: This is how Lyme disease is spreading in Spain

Those who don't have pets like dogs or cats may not be familiar with ticks, especially if they don't live in the countryside. But the presence of these small arthropods, which act as parasites, feeding on the blood of animals (including humans), is very common. In fact, it's estimated that the tick population is increasing due to climate change, among other reasons, because they are no longer common only in spring.

That's why it's essential to take special care if you have pets or live in the countryside. Specifically, people living in rural areas have a 36% higher risk of suffering from Lyme disease, a disease caused by tick bites, according to Mariano Bueno, a doctor, pharmacist, and president of the SOS Lyme Foundation .

"This risk is heightened if you work in forestry, agriculture, or livestock due to frequent exposure to tick habitats," the expert says. You should also be vigilant for ticks if you engage in activities such as hiking, camping, and fishing in tick-prone areas.

On the other hand, households with pets are 1.83 times more likely to find ticks crawling on them and 1.49 times more likely to find ticks attached to family members, compared to those without. This is why a study published in Veterinary Sciences advises owners to monitor their pets for parasites upon returning from outside.

With cats, this monitoring is complicated because they don't go out for walks with their owners, so it's harder to control them. Dr. Bueno explains: "They tend to be left free, they tend to roam farther, they tend to hunt small rodents, and their owners are less likely to use tick prevention, both with collars and detailed examinations."

Lyme disease

The consequence of this increased presence of ticks is " a geometric progression of bites through which diseases are transmitted, among which Lyme disease stands out," says Bueno. So much so that, according to the National Center for Epidemiology of the Carlos III Health Institute , the number of hospitalizations due to Lyme disease has tripled in Spain between 2005 and 2019.

People living in rural areas have a 36% higher risk of suffering from Lyme disease, a disease caused by tick bites.

It is an infectious, multi-organ disease that can cause death if not detected early enough to implement containment measures. In addition to ticks, it can also be transmitted by insects such as mosquitoes, fleas, or bedbugs infected with a bacterium called Borrelia burgdorferi.

Erythema, headache, neck and throat pain, muscle and joint pain , fever and chills, fatigue and loss of appetite, swollen glands, neurological and cardiac problems, vision disorders and liver discomfort are some of the symptoms of Lyme disease.

That is, they are common symptoms in other diseases, which is why Lyme syndrome is known as " the great imitator," in Bueno's words. He adds: "It is suspected that many patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, neurodegenerative diseases, or autoimmune diseases are cases whose origin is Lyme disease."

Other serious pathology

Another disease that can be transmitted by tick bites is Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF). Caused by a virus, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) , it causes severe outbreaks of viral hemorrhagic fever, with a case fatality rate of between 10% and 40%.

Its symptoms, which begin suddenly, include “ fever , myalgia (muscle pain), dizziness, neck pain and stiffness, lumbago, headache, eye irritation, and photophobia (hypersensitivity to light). Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and sore throat may occur initially, followed by sudden mood swings and confusion.”