TICK PARALYSIS ON THE ATLANTIC SEABOARDStudy of Incidence During Poliomyelitis Season with Report of a Case and Review of Published Cases

Abstract

TICK PARALYSIS is an acute disease of the central nervous system with symptoms ranging from weakness of the legs and ataxia to paralysis of all four limbs, and, in severe cases, as the disease advances, to bulbar paralysis closely simulating anterior poliomyelitis. It is flaccid and ascending in character (Landry type). Its occurrence at the peak of tick infestation coincides with the poliomyelitis season, making its recognition imperative. It is still rare but becoming more prevalent in the Eastern Seaboard States, as the added cases being reported from year to year indicate. It can be fatal, death being due to involvement of the cranial nerves with ultimate respiratory paralysis, and since death may be prevented when the disease is recognized early by the simple removal of the tick, it is essential that the physician be aware of the existence of such a syndrome, especially in tick-infested areas. The dramatic improvement