A New Jersey man who died shortly after eating a hamburger is confirmed to be the first known fatality connected to a tick-induced “meat allergy,” according to researchers at the University of Virginia.
The condition, called alpha-gal syndrome, develops when a Lone Star tick bites someone and triggers their body to react to a sugar found in red meat. After that, eating beef, pork or lamb can set off delayed allergic reactions. They range from hives and stomach trouble to, in rare situations, a dangerous collapse of the immune system.
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In the 47-year-old man's case, scientists say he got violently ill after a steak dinner but did not yet know he had developed the condition. Two weeks later, he ate a hamburger at a barbecue and was found collapsed in a bathroom less than an hour later.
His initial autopsy could not explain why he died. But after his family pushed for more answers, UVA allergist Dr. Thomas Platts-Mills — who originally identified the meat allergy — examined blood collected after his death. Tests showed extremely high levels of sensitivity to alpha-gal, the kind seen in deadly allergic reactions.
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The man had recently complained of about a dozen itchy “chigger bites” on his ankles. Researchers now believe those were actually bites from Lone Star tick larvae, which can trigger or strengthen the allergy.
Platts-Mills urged doctors and patients in areas where the tick is common to take symptoms seriously, especially severe stomach pain several hours after eating red meat, and to consider testing for the allergy.
