There’s another reason to avoid tick bites.
The Illinois Public Health Department says a resident has contracted a virus it has never seen before in the state.
The Pawassan virus has been around the US and Canada for years but never appeared in Illinois until now.
IDPH Communicable Disease Section Chief Judy Kauerauf tells WBBM the positive resident lives in Central Illinois but had travelled to another state so it’s not clear where they contracted Pawassan.
Symptoms don’t appear for one to five weeks and can include headache, vomiting and fever.
Worst cases turn into encephalitis, meningitis or seizures.
Assistant Section Chief Johnathan Popovitch suggests wearing light-colored long-sleeved clothing when in tall grass to avoid being bitten by black-legged deer ticks.
The department will be conducting a tick drag in October in Central Illinois to find and test ticks for the disease.
Pawassan is rare and there is currently no vaccine or treatment for it.