Communicable Disease Service

When infected blood-sucking insects (such as mosquitoes and ticks) bite a person, they can spread vector-borne illnesses such as West Nile Virus and Lyme disease. There are many types of vector-borne illness. The best defense against them is to take steps to avoid being bitten by infected insects.

The Communicable Disease Service has staff dedicated to the monitoring, control and prevention of vector-borne diseases.

Specific activities performed by vector-borne illness staff include:

• Surveillance of vector-borne diseases
• Identifying risk factors
• Monitoring geographic trends
• Providing technical assistance and training
• Educating the public and healthcare partners

• Alpha-gal Syndrome
• Anaplasmosis
• Babesiosis
• Borrelia Miyamotoi
• Eastern Equine Encephalitis
• Ehrlichiosis
• Jamestown Canyon Virus
• Lyme Disease
• Powassan Virus
• Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis (including Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever)
• Tularemia
• West Nile Virus

Some vector-borne diseases that do not occur in New Jersey but may be identified in travelers returning from other states or countries where these diseases may occur:

• Chikungunya
• Dengue
• Malaria
• Plague
• St. Louis Encephalitis
• Yellow Fever
• Zika

There are several emerging/reemerging or very rare arboviral diseases that are transmitted by mosquitoes or ticks that may impact NJ residents. Commercial testing may not be widely available, but specialized testing at public health laboratories can be provided for these diseases. Clinicians who would like to request arboviral disease testing should complete the Arboviral Testing Request worksheet and send via encrypted email to CDSVectorTeam@doh.nj.gov. Arboviral testing can be requested for patients who are hospitalized with neuroinvasive disease (e.g., encephalitis, meningitis, acute flaccid paralysis) of unknown etiology or, for patients presenting with a febrile illness of unknown etiology if an arboviral disease is suspected.

To request Zika virus testing, please click here.

To request Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis testing, please click here. 

Ill or Dead Bird Reports

NJDOH no longer tests birds for WNV, but if you find an ill or dead bird on your property, you should report it to your county mosquito control agency who will use that information as a part of  WNV mosquito surveillance efforts and the NJDEP Division of Fish and Wildlife.

For reports of sick or dead domestic poultry, including gamebirds, backyard poultry and exhibition poultry, please contact New Jersey Department of Agriculture immediately at (609) 671-6400.

• Tutorial: JerseySurv Tick Collection and Pool Entry
• Webinar: "Tick-borne Diseases: What NJ Public Health Professionals Need to Know" (5/22/18)
• Webinar: "Tick-borne Diseases in New Jersey: Clinician Challenges" (5/23/19)

• Ehrlichiosis and Anaplasmosis (WB4504)

• Introduction to Tickborne Diseases and Disease Prevention (WB4328)

• Lyme Disease Clinical Overview (WB4329)

• Lyme Disease Testing and Diagnosis (WB4330)

• Lyme Disease Treatment and Management (WB4380)

Free Continuing Education credits available: CME, CNE, CPE, CHES, CPH

• To register, please go to CDC TRAIN or click the links above.
• Click here for instructions on how to obtain CE credits.

For NJ Public Health CEs: Register on NJLMN, complete the CDC module(s), then e-mail your certificate(s) of completion.