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Rare tick-borne virus in Saratoga County

Jul 19, 2017 12:02 am
Claire Hughes reports in the Albany Times Union two Saratoga County residents have been hospitalized for rare tick-borne Powassan virus, and one has died. A third person may be infected, according to the state Health Department. Before this year, only 24 cases of the virus had been reported in New York since 2000, with five deaths. Ticks are being collected and tested for Lyme disease, babesiosis, anaplasmosis, and the Powassan virus with results expected by mid-August. Powassan virus can infect a person within 15 minutes of a tick bite, and 15 percent of those infected die. Read the full story in the Albany Times Union.