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5d ago

UVA Team Documents First Known Death From Tick-Linked Red Meat Allergy

Postmortem testing found extreme alpha‑gal sensitization consistent with fatal anaphylaxis.

A close-up of a lone star tick, the most frequent spreader of alpha-gal syndrome in the U.S.
This undated photo provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a female Lone Star tick, which despite its Texas-sounding name, is found mainly in the Southeast. At least 100,000 people in the U.S. have become allergic to red meat since 2010 because of a weird syndrome triggered by tick bites. That's according to a new government report. But health officials believe more have the problem and don’t know it, and the actual number is more than than four times higher. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday, July 27, 2023 released two reports on the growing tick-borne allergy problem. (James Gathany/CDC via AP)
© Jay Ondreicka via Shutterstock
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Overview

  • The case report in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice details a 47-year-old New Jersey pilot whose September 2024 death was later tied to alpha‑gal syndrome.
  • Two weeks before he died after a hamburger, he had a severe overnight illness four hours after a steak on a camping trip but recovered and did not seek care.
  • An initial autopsy listed “sudden unexplained death,” but targeted blood tests arranged by UVA’s Dr. Thomas Platts‑Mills showed very high alpha‑gal–specific IgE (about 2,000) and elevated tryptase consistent with anaphylaxis.
  • Researchers say recent itchy “chigger” bites were likely lone star tick larvae exposures, and note exercise and a beer on the day he died may have intensified the reaction.
  • Experts urge clinicians and the public to recognize delayed abdominal pain hours after eating mammalian meat as a potential allergy emergency, as suspected U.S. cases have climbed with tick expansion and many doctors remain unfamiliar with the condition.