Q: What is Tularemia?

Tularemia is an illness that affects both animals and man. It is caused by the bacteria francisella tularensis, which can live for 3-4 months in mud, water, or the carcasses of dead animals. Humans can catch tularemia by handling infected animals or from bites by infected flies, mosquitoes, or ticks.

Q: Who gets Tularemia?

Anyone can get tularemia if they spend much time outdoors in areas where ticks, flies and mosquitoes can be found.

Q: How is the disease transmitted?

Contact with small animals such as rabbits, hares, rodents, birds, and their ticks transmit tularemia. Handling carcasses of infected animals (hunters while skinning) transmits it, ingesting undercooked infected meat, drinking contaminated water and inhalation of dust from contaminated soil, grain or hay. It is also transmitted by tick bites and rarely through bites of an infected coyote, squirrel, skunk, hog, cat, or dog.

Q: What are the symptoms of Tularemia?

Most people become ill in either the summer or winter. In the summer, the ticks that carry tularemia become more active. During the winter hunting season, illness can result from contact with infected rabbits (usually skinning them). Usually there is sudden onset of fever with headache and fatigue that lasts for several weeks. With skin contact or a tick bite, there will be an ulcer with swelling of lymph nodes, and a rash may be present. Eating or drinking food or water containing the bacteria, may produce a throat infection, stomach pain, diarrhea and/or vomiting. Breathing dust containing the bacteria may produce a pneumonia-like illness. Fever, chills, headache, chest pain and coughing may also occur.

Q: How soon do the symptoms appear?

Symptoms usually appear within 1-14 days after infection with the bacteria. Average is within 3-5 days.

Q: What is the treatment for Tularemia?

Antibiotics are prescribed and most people fully recover. If someone has been exposed, an antibiotic should be started as soon as possible.

Q: Can an infected person spread Tularemia?

No, it is not transmitted from person to person.

Q: Can a person get Tularemia again?

After recovering from tularemia, a person probably will not get it again for a long time. However second infections can occur.

Q: How can Tularemia be prevented?

Rubber gloves should be worn when skinning or handling animals, especially rabbits. Wild rabbit and rodent (such as squirrel) meat should be cooked completely before eating. Avoid tick bites, use insect and tick repellents when spending time outside for long periods. In spring and summer, look for attached ticks every two to three hours if outside for long periods. Remove any attached ticks immediately. Avoid swimming, drinking, bathing in untreated water where infection is prevalent among wild animals.

Q: How should a tick be removed?

Any tick should be removed as soon as possible. The best way is to use tweezers to grab the tick as close to the skin as possible and pull it straight out. Do not squeeze the tick's body when removing it. Do not handle ticks with bare hands. Wash your hands after removing a tick. You may want to apply an antiseptic on the bite. After removing, drown the tick in alcohol or kerosene and keep it in case illness occurs so you can show it to your doctor or send it for identification.