DANVILLE — Richard “Dick” Warner has experienced firsthand the effects of Lyme disease. Two of his children have had it. One of his girls has a permanent handicap because of the disease’s effect on her body. His son, Christopher, on the other hand, is OK; he was treated early.

“I’ve interacted with a number of people in East Central Illinois,” said Warner, a faculty member who studies wildlife ecology at the University of Illinois. “Many believe they have gotten Lyme disease here.”

Warner said his son contracted the disease after taking a fishing trip to Vermilion County.

Doug Toole, director of environmental health at the Vermilion County Health Department, said so far, there has been one confirmed case of Lyme disease in the county this year. In 2010, there were two. Toole said, however, many cases go unreported.

In Illinois, the number of reported cases of Lyme disease has settled at 135, jumping almost 300 percent from 10 years ago, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.

Humans contract Lyme disease after being bitten by an infected black-legged (deer) tick.

In its nymph stage, the deer tick is the size of a pinhead, while adults measure about one-eighth of an inch. Still, that hasn’t stopped the deer tick from steadily inching across Illinois.

Linn Haramis, an entomologist for the IDPH, said in 1998, the deer tick was known to be established in eight counties in the state. Currently, the tick can be found in 26 counties, including Vermilion.

Haramis said probably the ticks are being transported by deer, which can move as far as 60 miles in their lifetime. And Illinois has a large deer population, which has increased significantly in the past 25 years, according to University of Illinois Extension.

Most commonly, ticks pick up Lyme disease, though, from white-footed mice, according to IDPH.

However, a recent study by University of Illinois researchers has produced new findings.

Nohra Mateus-Pinilla was a part of the group that trapped small mammals in Allerton Park in Monticello and tested them for Lyme disease.

“What is somewhat unusual is the prairie is the habitat that is hosting a high number of mammal-infected deer ticks,” said Mateus-Pinilla, wildlife veterinary epidemiologist for the Illinois Natural History Survey. Deer ticks are most commonly known to be found in wooded areas, along trails, according to the IDPH.

John Taft, plant ecologist for INHS, said the prairie at Allerton, however, does not qualify as real prairie. Taft said the prairie at Allerton was planted and does not even mimic naturally the almost 2,500 acres of original prairie left in Illinois.

Another finding by Mateus-Pinilla and her team: evidence that the prairie vole could serve as a competent host reservoir for the tick. So, instead of the white-footed mouse passing the disease onto the deer tick, at Allerton — almost 60 miles from Vermilion County — it was the prairie vole.

While their research was, perhaps, groundbreaking, Mateus-Pinilla said there is still a big problem: Not many people are studying the deer tick.

“There are a lot of unknowns,” Mateus-Pinilla said. “It seems like we have very little work on the ground being done.”

Mateus-Pinilla and Haramis both admit there is no statewide monitoring program for the ticks or for Lyme disease. Mateus-Pinilla said what the state does know is based on accidental reports to IDPH. Haramis said most of the research on ticks and Lyme disease is being done through the Illinois Natural History Survey or through the University of Illinois Veterinary School.

“What is scary is our lack of knowledge and understanding of perhaps the geographic and the temporal distribution of the tick,” Mateus-Pinilla said.

Warner, whose daughter contracted Lyme disease, knows that lack of knowledge and awareness can have grave consequences.

When his daughter contracted Lyme, Warner said the disease was not something physicians knew much about. As a result, his daughter has a permanent neurological handicap.

“It’s time to have stepped-up awareness by the public and the medical community that Lyme is in Illinois,” Warner said.

Dr. Jeff Nelson teaches at North Park University in Chicago. He has studied patients with Lyme.

Nelson said after patients contract Lyme disease they can go on to have arthritis, which affects the large joints — knees, hips and elbows. The arthritis usually affects one side of the body. He says rarely patients can have facial palsy — weakness of the face. He also says patients can have meningitis and heart problems, which are much less common.

Nelson says typically people can be treated by a short-term stint of antibiotics of two to four weeks. However, there is some controversy between the medical and academic communities concerning length of treatment. Nelson says this controversy may partially be the fault of an imperfect test for detecting Lyme disease.

While the incidence of the disease is increasing across the state, including heightened cases in the Chicago area, Nelson says there is a fine line when it comes to the amount of concern people should have.

“Yes, there is a risk of the disease,” Nelson said. “On the other hand, we’re not seeing large numbers of cases. There are certainly other public health diseases that attract attention and resources.”

Haramis said states such as Wisconsin and Minnesota have higher incidences of the disease than in Illinois.

Still, he said the tick does seem to be increasing its range and presence. Haramis said the ticks generally follow river corridors, including the Rock River in Winnebago County and the Wabash River, which runs along eastern Illinois and through Indiana. And the tick has been found repeatedly and is believed to be established in Vermilion County, according to IDPH.

Lara Darling works for the Vermilion County Conservation District. She said it’s not the most common tick. They have found the deer tick in their parks.

She says ticks are present mostly from spring through fall, with spring being the peak season.

It’s not something she’s too concerned about, though. She said an infected tick has to be on the body for 24 to 48 hours to infect its host with the disease.

“I personally have not heard of any Lyme disease cases in Vermilion County,” Darling said. “I don’t think it’s too common in Vermilion County, yet.”

Darling says they have school children who hike in their parks almost every day of the week in the spring or fall. She said they encourage hikers to spray down with Deet.

They also do periodic “tick checks” along the trails.

Darling said one misconception is that ticks jump or fall from trees, but they are actually found hanging out in ankle-high grass. Haramis said because ticks climb up, those who’ve been in the forest should check their hairline and shoulders for ticks as well.

Darling said they also encourage the kids to take showers when they get home, lathering up with soap and feeling around for ticks.

“So many kids are afraid of them, but if you just take precautionary measures, and if you’re careful, you shouldn’t have too much to worry about,” Darling said.

Darling used to be afraid of tick bites, but not anymore. Darling probably would say knowledge is power.

“I’ll definitely be hiking again this fall with school kids,” Darling said.

Precautions

While visiting wooded areas or areas with tall grass and weeds:

• Wear light-colored clothing and long-sleeved shirts;
• Wear long trousers and boots; don’t wear shorts and flip flops;
• Apply insect repellent;

• Walk in the center of trails;
• Check yourself for ticks periodically.

If you find an attached tick:

• Use tweezers, not your bare hands, to remove the tick;
• Do not burn the tick with a match;
• Do not cover it with petroleum jelly.

Signs you’ve been bitten by an infected tick:

• A fever and/or bulls-eye rash within two weeks after possible bite.

To learn more about tick bite prevention, visit www.idph.state.il.us/envhealth/pccommonticks.htm.

To read more about the researchers’ study at

Allerton, go to http://news.illinois.edu/news/11/0621lyme_J_Rydzewski_NohraMateus-Pinilla.html.