Knowledge and prevention of tickborne diseases among Hispanic and non‐Hispanic residents of Maryland and Virginia

Abstract

Tickborne diseases (TBDs) such as Lyme disease (LD), babesiosis, ehrlichiosis and Rocky Mountain spotted fever cause substantial morbidity and even mortality in the USA. Data indicate that Hispanic populations may be at greater risk for occupational exposure to ticks and disseminated LD; however, information on knowledge and practices of Hispanic populations regarding TBDs is limited. We surveyed 153 Hispanic and 153 non‐Hispanic residents of Maryland and Virginia to assess awareness of TBDs, prevention practices and risk of tick encounters. Hispanic respondents were less likely than non‐Hispanics to report familiarity with LD symptoms (21% vs. 53%, p < 0.001) and correctly identify ticks as vectors of LD (40% vs. 85%, p < 0.001). Although there was no significant difference in overall proportion of respondents who routinely take one or more preventive measures to prevent tick bites (59% vs. 61%, p = 0.65), Hispanics were more likely to report showering after coming indoors (36% vs. 25%, p = 0.04) but less likely to conduct daily tick checks compared with non‐Hispanics (17% vs. 35%, p < 0.001). History of tick bite or finding a tick crawling on oneself or a household member in the past year did not significantly differ between Hispanics and non‐Hispanics (19% vs. 24%, p = 0.26). Notably, after controlling for Hispanic/non‐Hispanic ethnicity, primary language (English vs. Spanish) was a significant predictor of whether an individual had knowledge of LD symptoms, correctly identified ticks as vectors for LD and performed daily tick checks. These results provide guidance for future development of more targeted and effective TBD prevention education for both Hispanic and non‐Hispanic communities.

Occupational Lyme Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Global warming, deforestation, and changes in precipitation [ 21 ], as well as other environmental conditions (habitat, climate, and dust and gas pollution) prevailing within urban heat islands have probably exerted an impact on tick abundance and activity, thus increasing the prevalence of LD over extensive areas [ 22 ]. Vegetation type and distribution (canopy, understory, and ground cover), human behavior [ 23 ], and seasons [ 24 ] have been found to be associated with an increased risk of tick bites [ 24 ].…”

Evaluating spatial and temporal patterns of tick encounters using community science data submitted through a smartphone application

“…In contrast to inhand resources, a smartphone app has the potential to build community and engage hard-to-reach information seekers in a bidirectional manner (Cardona, 2013). In particular, lack of tick-borne disease awareness and language barriers have been identified as contributing factors in the under-and delayed diagnosis of Lyme disease among Spanish-speaking populations in the United States (Beck et al, 2022;Hu et al, 2019;Maxwell et al, 2022). A future direction of The Tick App would be to make the platform available in additional languages, starting with Spanish.…”

Tick bite frequency, prevention practices and Lyme disease diagnoses among U.S. Hispanic survey respondents

“…In nationwide cross-sectional surveys of tickborne disease attitudes and behaviours among the U.S. public from 2013 to 2015 (herein referred to as ConsumerStyles), 20.6% of respondents wore repellent, 15.5% showered after coming indoors and 19.4% checked for ticks daily . Results from a 2015 survey of Hispanic adults from outpatient clinics and community centres in Maryland and Virginia indicated that 36% of respondents wore repellent, 36% showered after coming indoors and 17% checked for ticks daily (Hu et al, 2019). The corresponding rates observed in our study were 29%, 11% and 12%, respectively.…”

“…Hispanic respondents were also less likely to report daily tick checks but were more likely to report showering soon after coming indoors to prevent tick bites. Adjusting for ethnicity and demographic variables, survey participants who primarily spoke Spanish were less likely to correctly identify the route of LD transmission, recognize LD symptoms and perform daily tick checks compared to those who primarily spoke English (Hu et al, 2019).…”