Abstract
Introduction: Tick-borne illnesses are rising in the United States, and tick bites can result in hematologic complications including anemia, thrombocytopenia, pancytopenia, and even life-threatening sequelae like disseminated intravascular coagulation. While case reports and brief reviews exist for specific ticks, there is a lack of review on the known hematologic complications after various tick-borne illnesses.
Methodology: This narrative review examined over twenty articles on hematologic complications of tick-borne illnesses published from 2000 onwards. A comprehensive search of electronic databases, including PubMed and Google Scholar, was conducted to identify relevant literature published between 2000 and 2024. Inclusion criteria comprised articles available in English and those describing hematologic consequences of tick-borne illnesses. Exclusion criteria included duplicates, unpublished works, and studies not directly related to the topic. A total of over twenty articles were screened based on title and abstract for eligibility.
Discussion: Tick bites can cause various hematologic complications, including anemia, leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, pancytopenia, and disseminated intravascular coagulation by various mechanisms. While it can cause marrow suppression, tick bites can also cause leukocytosis. Clinically, patients can present with profuse bleeding or bruising in some cases or severe diseases like disseminated intravascular coagulation. Workup for these various hematologic pathologies can include complete blood counts and peripheral blood smears.
Conclusions: Early identification of hematologic abnormalities related to tick-borne illnesses can be important for clinical management.