Are Military Family Members at Risk for Lyme Disease?

Lyme disease risk for military families may be higher than previously recognized. A study by Schubert and Melanson examined exposure to the black-legged tick (Ixodes scapularis), the primary vector for Lyme disease, among military personnel and their families at West Point, New York.

The study, entitled
“Prevalence of Lyme Disease Attributable to Military Service at the USMA, West Point NY: FY2016–2018”, reviewed Lyme disease cases treated at the hospital on the West Point Military Reservation between 2016 and 2018.¹

Key Point: In this West Point study, military family members had nearly twice the rate of Lyme disease compared with active-duty service members.

Lyme Disease Cases at West Point

The investigators identified 144 Lyme disease cases during the study period.

63 cases involved active-duty military personnel
81 cases involved family members

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Higher Lyme Disease Prevalence Among Military Families

The period prevalence of Lyme disease among military personnel was 292 encounters per 100,000 over the three-year study period.

Family members, however, had a much higher prevalence, with 581 cases per 100,000.

According to Schubert, these findings demonstrate a difference in Lyme disease prevalence between service members and their families.

“Family members were at higher risk to contract Lyme disease than service members, as is commonly suggested in the literature,” the authors wrote.

Why Might Military Personnel Have Lower Risk?

The authors suggested that several factors may explain why active-duty service members had lower Lyme disease rates than their families.

At West Point, many service members work indoors during the academic year and spend limited time in training environments where tick exposure may occur.

In addition, military personnel often receive preventive training and protective measures such as:

Permethrin-treated uniforms
Tick-check training
Education on tick-bite prevention

These protective measures may help reduce Lyme disease exposure among military personnel.

Need for Additional Research

The authors noted that additional research is needed to determine whether these findings are unique to West Point or apply to other military locations.

Tick exposure varies widely by geographic location and training environment, which may influence Lyme disease risk among both service members and their families.

The study did not report outcomes for the 63 service members who developed Lyme disease.

Dr. Daniel Cameron, MD, MPH
Lyme disease clinician with over 30 years of experience and past president of ILADS.

Symptoms • Testing • Coinfections • Recovery • Pediatric • Prevention