Kateřina Kybicová: Nejvíce infikovaná klíšťata jsou ve velkých městech

Scientists from the State Health Institute and other institutions analyzed nearly one hundred thousand ticks across the Czech Republic. In Zlín, up to 60 percent of ticks were infected with at least one pathogen, the highest proportion among regional cities in the Czech Republic. Lyme borreliosis was detected in more than 36 percent of ticks in Zlín. The research showed that the greatest risk of Lyme borreliosis infection is not in nature but in urban parks and private gardens. Of a total of 12,000 ticks analyzed during the three-year project, 44 percent were infected with at least one of five types of bacteria. In forests, tick infection rates were much lower – less than 11 percent for borreliosis. High infection rates in cities may be related to ideal microclimatic conditions and the availability of hosts such as rodents, hedgehogs, and birds.