Three weeks after his family found and removed the tick, Regan’s flu-like symptoms worsened despite doxycycline, sending him from Concord Hospital to the ICU and then to Boston.
Months of intensive rehabilitation are expected if he recovers; Powassan can attack the central nervous system, causing encephalitis and long-term neurological damage.
3-4 New Hampshire cases are diagnosed each year, health officials said, and no vaccine or specific treatment exists, making tick-bite prevention the only protection.