United States: Evidence is mounting that it may be a banner year in tick bites.
According to the statistics by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the rates of individuals who seek emergency care for tick bites were the highest in May they have been since 2019.
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You are not the only one to get a tick bite: They occur in every state of the US, and about 31 million people contract a tick bite annually. All of the tick bites do not result in disease; in fact, not all ticks are infected, and not all tick bites have been long enough to have disease pass.
Nevertheless, the majority of the reported cases of vector-borne diseases (including mosquitoes) are attributed to ticks, which may possess pathogens with dreadful consequences.
The most prevalent tick-borne disease in the US is Lyme disease, which is estimated to attack over 470,000 citizens annually.
The tick population is booming in many areas of the country for a number of reasons, including land development, movement of their prey and, some experts say, climate change. Here's what you need to know and how to stay safe: 👉 https://t.co/K00wnFBBcp#Health#Ticks pic.twitter.com/lwvWLuD8Nc
— AARP Ohio (@AARPOhio) June 21, 2025
According to Alison Hinckley, an epidemiologist at the CDC’s Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, “But ticks can actually expose people in the US to more than a dozen different disease-causing agents,” npr.org reported.
“The illnesses can range from mild to life-threatening,” Hinckley noted.
These are some of the facts you need to know about these biting creatures and how to be safe.
Compared to mosquitoes that you get stung once, with ticks, there is usually more than one time that you can minimize your risks.
The reason is that the majority of tick species must crawl onto your body, attach to the skin, and, in most cases, feed you for several hours or a few days before they make you ill.
Moreover, as Thomas Mather, director of the University of Rhode Island’s Center for Vector-Borne Disease and founder of its TickEncounter Resource Center, noted, “The longer a tick is attached, the more likely it is to have spit an infectious dose of whatever germ it might be carrying into you,” npr.org reported.
It is not very active, with its tiny leg crawling, so ticks do not travel very far by themselves. Therefore, the bugs can be transported by means of animals outside or even into houses, whether the animal is a pest or a pet.