Ticks parasitizing humans in Georgia and South Carolina

From 1990 through 1995, 913 ticks removed from 460 human patients in Georgia or South Carolina were identified and recorded. The majority of these specimens (758, 83.0%) were lone star ticks, Amblyomma americanum. One hundred and four (11.4%) American dog ticks Dermacentor variabilis, 36 (3.9%) blacklegged ticks Ixodes scapularis, 9 (1.0%) Gulf coast ticks Amblyomma maculatum, and 6 (0.7%) brown dog ticks Rhipicephalus sanguineus were also recovered. All active stages (larvae, nymphs, and adults) of A. americanum were represented, whereas nymphs and adults of D. variabilis and I. scapularis and only adults of A. maculatum and R. sanguineus were recorded. Compared with data published for other regions in the U.S.A., A. americanum was a much more prevalent parasite of humans in the current survey. Only 1 (3%) of the I. scapularis collected was a nymph. Because these tick species are vectors of zoonotic pathogens or cause tick paralysis in humans, the data have epidemiological significance.