A New Jersey man’s death is believed to be tied to a bite from a meat allergy-causing tick in a first-of-its-kind case, according to a case study from researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine and Hackensack Meridian Health in New Jersey.
The ticks’ bites have been tied to the development of alpha-gal syndrome, a condition which causes meat to trigger allergic reactions, the researchers explained in the study published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology in Practice.
The 47-year-old airline pilot was healthy prior to his death, researchers said. He was camping in the summer of 2024 with his family when he became unwell. Hours after enjoying a steak dinner, the man woke up with symptoms of abdominal discomfort and later of diarrhea and vomiting.
Investigating the unexplained death
While he initially planned to speak to a doctor, he and his wife eventually decided against it after his condition improved. However, two weeks after the initial flare-up in September 2024, the man became sick after eating a hamburger at a barbecue.
Within four hours of consuming the burger, the man fell unconscious on his bathroom floor and was transferred to the hospital by paramedics. He was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
The cause of death was initially ruled as "sudden unexplained death" after inconclusive results. However, an allergy specialist later determined that the man had suffered an extreme allergic reaction.