Doctors are warning the public about a potentially life-threatening allergy one can get from tick bites. It comes as tick season ramps up.
Nearly two years ago, Holly Reycroft removed a tick from her body. That evening, she enjoyed a pot roast dinner, and hours later, the Hampton Bays woman woke up in the middle of the night.
"I was not feeling so good. Stomach, head, the whole nine yards, and I was having difficulty breathing," she said.
Doctors diagnosed Reycroft with alpha-gal syndrome, an allergy to red meat that one can get after being bitten by a lone star tick.
"Living in Suffolk County, we've got more alpha-gal cases per capita than anywhere else in the country," said Dr. Erin McGintee, an allergist and immunologist in Southampton.
McGintee says now that tick season is in full swing, she expects to see patients every day. She says reactions from alpha-gal syndrome range from mild to deadly.
"Hands and feet are a little itchy or my stomach is a little crampy, to hives all over the body, to, in the most severe cases, anaphylactic shock," she said.
Experts say that anyone living in an area with a lot of deer is at risk of getting a tick bite. Ticks are prevalent on the East End, but also further west on Long Island.
"I'm seeing more and more patients who are coming from further west in Suffolk County because the deer population has been spreading west," said McGintee.
Reycroft hasn't had red meat in two years and has this message for Long Island residents:
"Don't be afraid to go outdoors, just be cautious," she said.
Doctors say peak tick times are May to June and later summer to early fall when baby ticks hatch.
McGintee urges people to use repellants specifically for ticks and check themselves frequently for the insects.
