In this episode of “Answers From the Lab,” host Bobbi Pritt, M.D., chair of the Division of Clinical Microbiology at Mayo Clinic, is joined by Elitza Theel, Ph.D., director of the Infectious Diseases Serology Laboratory at Mayo Clinic, for a timely discussion on tick-borne diseases. Topics covered include:

• Observations from this year’s tick season as we approach the end of July — a peak month for tick-borne disease transmission — along with trends in reported tick-borne pathogens over the past two decades.
• Algorithms developed by Mayo Clinic to guide clinicians in selecting the right tests for tick-borne and mosquito-borne diseases. 
• The emergence of rare and esoteric infections and the challenges posed by vectors that carry and transmit multiple pathogens in a single bite.
• Shotgun metagenomics’ growing role in the diagnosis of vector-borne infections.

More resources
Read "Update on North American tick-borne diseases and how to diagnose them" in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology for more insights from Drs. Pritt and Theel. You can also explore tools and information from Mayo Clinic Laboratories, including region-specific details, algorithms, prevention tools, and more.