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Official Site of White Bear Lake Conservation District - Minutes and Agendas Page 1 of2 ~~_._=_=-''''''''''-~'''''''::'=:::::'''~h--:::;~P-~~==~~==-c.-=-=,r'",c~,=:C'''.J ~ Y1 ~ !;.Sn.~.tion m.t"" Mission Board Info Public Info Documents Contact Us H( REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION FROM MINNESOTA DNR ECOLOGICAL SERVICES, ST. PAUL Swimmer1s Itch Fact Sheet There are actions you can take to help reduce the odds of getting swimmer's itch. To understand which actions In sense it is important to look at the organism's biology. The organism which causes swimmer's itch has a compllcl life history. However, an Important fact to consider Is that the critter starts out in the intestinal lining of waterfowl, mostly ducks. So if you, or maybe your neighbors, are currently feeding waterfowl (ducks and geese) from your de stop. If ducks like to loaf on your dock do what you can to discourage them. You can try an owl wind sock, or statl Place the wind sock or statue on your dock and move it around every other day or so, so the ducb do not become accustom to it. If ducks don't hang out around your property then the source of the problem may be elsewhere in 1 lake and this strategy won't help much. If ducks do not congregate around your dock the swimmer's itch organism may originate somewhere else in the Ie and is being brought to your shoreline wave action or currents. The life stage that causes swimmer's itch Is called "cercaria" which is an Immature stage of a blood fluke common in waterfowl. The cercaria only lives for a day or s and typically inhabits the upper few inches of water which increases Its chances of coming into contact with a due (its definitive host). This behavior makes it easy for them to be moved around the lake, and tends to concentrate tl numbers along the shoreline. Strategy number 2, avoidance, swim from a raft or boat farther out from shore when are less likely to come intc) contact with the cercaria. This strategy may not be practical if you don't swim or have young children who want to play In the water near shore. Although the cercaria can enter your skin while you are wading or swimming you can also carry the critters out of water with you. If swimmer's Itch is a problem In the lake you live on it is important to towel off immediately after getting out ofthe water. The organism in the droplets of water on your skin will look for somewhere to go as the droplet of water evaporates, into your skin is their next refuge. So, if you did not pick up an infection in the water) can further reduce the odds of getting swimmer's itch by drying off with a towel. 50lutlon number 3, dry off with a towel soon after getting out of the water. If these strategies don't work for you there is the option of getting a permit from the DNR to use copper sulfate to I the snails which are an Intermediate host of the parasite. Infected snails release the life stage (cercaria) that actua causes swimmer's itch. The copper sulfate will only kill the snails present at the time of application, any snails wh enter the area afterwards will not be effected. The relief provided may be temporary and more than one treatment I be required. Usually only a small percent oUhe snails in a lake carry the infection, and they may not be the ones around your dock. The good news is the blood fluke which causes swimmer's itch cannot complete its life history in the human body Your body's immune system detects the cercaria as a foreign protein, attacks and kills it shortly after it penetrates skin. The severe itch and accompanying welt is an allergic reaction to the infection. There are several over the col. remedies your pharmacist can recommend to help relieve the discomfort, but please see your physician to get a definitive diagnosis. Not everyone is sensitive to swimmer's itch. You may have noticed that some people show no symptoms of swlml itch even though others swimming at the same time and place break out severely. The literature indicates that onl~ about 30 to 40 percent of the population is sensitive to swimmer's itch infection. But, much like poison ivy, your http://www.wblcd.org/swimmersitch.htm 4/28/2005