The Utah Department of Health has investigated 44 cases of Lyme disease this year, but only three cases have been confirmed.
The only other case of Lyme disease was recorded in 1982.State epidemiologist Craig Nichols said 13 of the 44 cases have been ruled out; they are not Lyme. But 28 cases are still in the "suspect" category.
Despite the increase in cases, Nichols said the incidences of Lyme in Utah are still substantially less than in other states, where hundreds or even thousands of cases have been reported.
Nichols doesn't expect a big increase in cases.
With the assistance of deer hunters, the Health Department recently collected ticks from deer hides. All of the ticks, Nichols said, were Dermacentors, Utah's local wood ticks, which are not known to carry Lyme disease.