Anaplasmosis Rise Confirmed

By DARLA M. YOUNGS
OTSEGO COUNTY

Following an opinion piece on the public health risk posed by tick-borne diseases printed earlier this month in “The Freeman’s Journal” and “Hometown Oneonta,” and concerns expressed by readers, Bassett Medical Center has confirmed that anaplasmosis is, indeed, on the rise here in Otsego County.

“We have seen an upswing of anaplasmosis cases the last two to three years, specifically as compared to Lyme disease. The County Department of Health would have specific numbers as far as total cases, but anaplasmosis is certainly much more common now than even five years ago in our area,” said Matthew Kleinmaier, MD, chief, Emergency and Trauma Services, Bassett Medical Center.

The Otsego County Department of Health reported only four cases were in the county in 2017, and only five in 2019. In contrast, 83 cases were confirmed in 2022 and 60 have been reported to date in 2023.

“The majority of anaplasmosis admissions are related to fever without a diagnosed cause, as symptoms are very non-specific and testing takes two to three days to return,” Kleinmaier continued. “I would not describe hospitalization as ‘frequent,’ but we certainly have seen a few patients—mostly older patients—who present with high fevers and general illness, who are hospitalized for either dehydration or general weakness and who are subsequently diagnosed with anaplasmosis when tick panels return a couple days later.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, anaplasmosis is a disease caused by the bacterium Anaplasma phagocytophilum. These bacteria are spread to people by tick bites primarily from the blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis) and the western blacklegged tick (Ixodes pacificus). People with anaplasmosis will often have fever, headache, chills and muscle aches. Doxycycline is the drug of choice for adults and children of all ages with anaplasmosis.