Chagas Communique for OSUE (pdf)
Chagas Communique for OSUE (word)
CFAES Colleagues,
In recent days there has been substantial press and social media attention focused on the potential risk of contracting Chagas disease in Ohio, and we’ve received a few questions from Extension Educators. The risk of contracting Chagas disease in Ohio is miniscule to non-existent. The pathogen is vectored by kissing bugs and a couple of other species that are similar in appearance to some bugs that are common in Ohio, including leaffooted seed bugs that commonly invade homes (BTW, which are completely harmless).
In response, Drs. Pete Piermarini (a veterinary / medical entomologist in the Dept. of Entomology) and Dave Shetlar (Extension State Specialist in our department) have prepared the following informational communique that hopefully will be useful if you receive questions from concerned stakeholders. It is attached in pdf and word format, at the beginning of this email.
Please contact Pete or Dave if you have additional questions.
Best regards,
Dan
Daniel A. Herms
Professor and Chair
State Extension Specialist
Department of Entomology
The Ohio State University
Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center
1680 Madison Ave., Wooster, OH 44691
330-202-3506 Office / 330-749-5453 Mobile / 330-263-3686 Fax
email: herms.2@osu.edu
Entomology Department: http://entomology.osu.edu
Herms Lab: http://oardc.osu.edu/hermslab