HIGHLAND COUNTY, Ohio — The Highland County Health Department is urging residents to guard against tick bites after reported Lyme disease cases climbed sharply over the past several years, even though this year’s count is running below 2025’s record high.
The department reported 14 confirmed Lyme disease cases in the county through June 30, according to data the agency released this week. That trails the 35 cases logged for all of 2025, the highest annual total in the decade of figures the department tracked, but remains far above the case counts reported earlier in the 2010s.
County figures show 8 cases in 2017, 5 in 2018, 9 in 2019, 4 in 2020 and 5 in 2021, according to the health department. Reported cases then nearly quadrupled to 19 in 2022, held at 19 in 2023, rose to 20 in 2024 and jumped to 35 in 2025.
The rise mirrors a statewide trend. The blacklegged tick, which spreads the bacteria that causes Lyme disease, was first established in Ohio in 2010, according to the Ohio Department of Health. Statewide cases have grown from 40 that year to 415 by 2020 and to more than 2,800 in 2025 as the tick’s range has expanded across the state, the state health department reports.
Early symptoms of Lyme disease can include fever, fatigue, headache and a distinctive bull’s-eye rash, the health department said. Residents who develop symptoms after a tick bite should contact a health care provider.
The health department recommended several precautions for people spending time outdoors this summer: using an EPA-approved insect repellent, wearing long sleeves and pants when possible, checking themselves, their children and their pets for ticks after outdoor activity, showering soon after coming indoors and promptly removing any attached ticks.
The Highland County Health Department, headquartered in Hillsboro, has served county residents since 1920.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Highland County Health Department.
