History Forum / General / British History / May 2007

Schumer Being Treated After Tick Bite

May 24, 7:47 PM (ET)

WASHINGTON (AP) - Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., is receiving treatment to
prevent lyme disease after being bitten by a tick during a recent tour of
dams in upstate New York.

Schumer, a senator since 1998, apparently was bitten during a May 7 dam tour
in the Hudson Valley region.  He and other lawmakers have called for
improvements to many small dams in the area to prevent flooding.

"I went tramping through the woods with Congressman John Hall to check
dams," the senator said.

He later found a tick, and spotted a telltale "bulls-eye" mark on his leg
that is an early sign of infection.

Schumer is now undergoing a 21-day treatment with antibiotics, which can
cause fatigue in some patients.

He said he hasn't noticed any symptoms besides the initial bulls-eye mark,
and is being treated "to prevent it from developing into the disease."

Lyme disease is transmitted by the black-legged tick, also known as the deer
tick.

Symptoms include lethargy, joint pain, fever, limping and loss of appetite.
Even after treatment, symptoms can recur in some patients.

Last summer, amid concerns that a new, aggressive type of tick had migrated
from southern states to New York, Schumer proposed legislation that would
have authorized $100 million for Lyme disease research.