Ticks in Switzerland: the snow is melting, the skies are turning blue, and the first whiff of springtime air lures our cabin-fever-plagued bodies into the budding forests and greening meadows of the great Swiss outdoors. But we aren't the only ones who come crawling out of our winter dens. Tick season is here as well.
Ticks? In Switzerland? Yes. In fact, Switzerland is one of the highest-risk areas of Europe for the tick-borne diseases, TBE (tick-borne encephalitis) and Lyme disease.
Up to 30 per cent of Swiss ticks carry the Lyme borreliosis agent, up to three per cent the TBE virus. Very rarely, other diseases can be transmitted through tick bites as well, including babesiosis, a very rare, parasitical infection, and ehrlichiosis, a bacterial infection of the white blood cells.
Areas of highest risk include most of the German-speaking cantons, but especially Zurich, Aargau, Thurgau and Bern, as well as parts of Cantons Vaud, Fribourg and Graubunden (see map). The risk period extends for most of the year, as long as ticks are active, from March to December. Elevations over 1,000 metres, as well as the southern areas of Switzerland, are considered to be TBE-free.
Both diseases, if untreated, can lead to serious health consequences, including fatalities.
Tick-borne encephalitis
There is currently no cure for TBE. It is only possible to address the symptoms, such as headache and fever. In up to 20 per cent of cases, long-term neuropsychological damage results, including paralysis and depression. The mortality rate lies between one and two per cent.
Luckily, there is a vaccine available, and the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health recommends it for any child or adult who spends time in a TBE-endemic area.
The vaccine consists of three doses, given over the course of six to twelve months, so it is important to follow-up once the treatment is begun.
It is also possible to contract TBE by drinking contaminated raw cow or goat's milk. In the last few years, the number of TBE cases has increased dramatically; according to the Federal Office of Public Health, in 2005, 206 persons were reported with the disease, about twice the annual average from 1999 to 2004. The latest available statistics for 2006 showed 256 cases.
Lyme disease
Lyme disease, on the other hand, is caused by a bacterium and, as such, is treatable with antibiotics, as long as the infection is recognised early enough. The first symptoms include a red ring around the bite site, which may "wander" across the skin surface for a period of a few days or weeks. This does not occur in all cases, however, and other symptoms include general un-wellness, headache and fever, all of which may be attributed to other causes.
In later stages, the disease can progress to meningitis, heart problems and loss of...
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