Microbiology / Infectious Disease

A recent BuzzFeed article reported on 22-year-old Katie Stephens and her boyfriend, Eddie Zytner, a Canadian couple who recently went on a beach vacation in the Dominican Republic. During their vacation, they both developed cutaneous larva migrans, a skin infection caused by hookworms. Bobbi Pritt, M.D., Director of the Clinical Parasitology Lab and Co-Director of Vector-Borne Diseases Lab Services in Mayo Clinic’s Department of Lab Medicine and Pathology, weighs in on the infection.

In this month’s “Hot Topic,” Elitza Theel, Ph.D. will discuss a new interferon-gamma release assay that can assist in the detection of individuals that are infected with tuberculosis.

The Rochester Post-Bulletin recently highlighted Bobbi Pritt, M.D.'s, “Creepy, Dreadful, Wonderful Parasites” blog, which celebrated its 10-year anniversary in October with a parasite-themed art contest and giveaways.

Mayo Clinic and the University of Notre Dame’s Eck Institute for Global Health have launched a four-tiered joint project to better characterize and further assist in the detection of vector-borne infectious diseases in Belize.

In the war against microbes, human beings are vastly outnumbered—and losing the weapons race.

Bobbi Pritt, M.D., Director of the Clinical Parasitology Laboratory and Co-Director of Mayo’s Vector-Borne Diseases Laboratory Services, co-authored an article review in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology on an update on malaria diagnostics and test utilization.

The algorithm can be viewed here.

An algorithm is a step-by-step procedure to guide clinicians and laboratorians in appropriate laboratory test ordering.

In the United States, Lyme disease is caused by "Borrelia burgdorferi" and "Borrelia mayonii" bacteria, carried primarily by "black-legged" or "deer ticks." To learn more about Lyme disease, the Mayo Clinic Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology and its reference laboratory Mayo Medical Laboratories have developed “The ABCs of Lyme Disease” flash cards.

To help you learn more about Lyme disease, “The ABCs of Lyme Disease” flash cards include information about symptoms, treatment, and other important facts.

Once confined to the southern part of the U.S., the lone star tick is now being found further north and west, and so are reports of allergic reactions to meat following a tick bite. Bobbi Pritt, M.D., Medical Director of the Clinical Parasitology Laboratory and Co-Director of Vector-Borne Diseases Laboratory Services at Mayo Clinic, weighs in.

Bobbi Pritt, M.D., Medical Director of the Clinical Parasitology Laboratory and Co-Director of Vector-Borne Diseases Laboratory Services at Mayo Clinic, discusses why the role of the white-footed mouse is so important in spreading tick-borne diseases.

Despite what you may have been told when you were younger, smothering or burning ticks is not a good idea. The correct removal method is even easier. Watch this video to learn how from Bobbi Pritt, M.D., a Mayo Clinic parasitic diseases expert.