AUDIO: Dr. Shayla Hesse discusses tick-borne illnesses

Ticks are out in full force this time of year, and Dr. Shayla Hesse, Sanford Health’s doctor of infectious diseases, says there are a number of diseases the arachnids can spread to humans and pets.

Anaplasmosis is on the rise, outpacing Lymes disease compared to years past.

Dr. Hesse says anaplasmosis is a bacteria transmitted by tick bites, generally by the same type of ticks that transmit Lymes disease.

There are a number of preventative measures one can take to avoid tick-borne illnesses, such as staying clear of heavy brush, walking along cleared trails and wearing insect repellant.

Ticks can transmit to people from pets as well, so it is also important that animals also have tick preventative medication.

Listen to the full interview with Dr. Hesse below:


Larissa Donovan is the News Director for the stations of Paul Bunyan Broadcasting and has been, almost without interruption, since Election Day 2016. She covers all the beats in north-central Minnesota, such as local government, crime, education, environment and social issues. She studied communications at Bemidji State University. You can follow along with Larissa's live tweets of meetings and events on Twitter!


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