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It is the first ever known death due to that condition.
Do you like hamburgers? Most would probably say yes, and some would even say, that they love them.
Now imagine having to either give up hamburgers forever or risk your life every time, you take a bite.
Sounds like hell, right? Well, we’re not saying that this can become the new normal in the future, but nevertheless, a sudden death in the United States has led researchers to confirm what had long been feared about a rare condition spread by ticks.
A puzzling collapse
Researchers at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have confirmed the first known death caused by alpha-gal syndrome, often called the meat allergy.
According to the team, the condition is triggered by tick bites and can lead to delayed allergic reactions after eating red meat.
The case involved a 47-year-old man from New Jersey who had been in good health. He died about four hours after eating beef, and for months the cause of death remained unresolved.
The mystery drew the attention of Thomas Platts-Mills, an allergy specialist at UVA Health who first identified alpha-gal syndrome years ago and continues to study its effects.
Events before his death
The man had gone camping with his family in the summer of 2024. One night, they ate steak late in the evening. Hours later, he woke with severe stomach pain, vomiting and diarrhoea, later describing the episode as life-threatening.
Two weeks later, unaware of any allergy, he ate a hamburger at a barbecue. Shortly after becoming unwell, he was found collapsed in a bathroom by his son.
Evidence after death
An autopsy failed to identify a clear cause, listing the death as sudden and unexplained. Seeking answers, the man’s widow asked for a further review, which led doctors to consult Platts-Mills.
Blood samples collected after death showed strong sensitisation to alpha-gal and signs consistent with fatal anaphylaxis. Although no tick bites were recalled, his wife remembered multiple itchy bites earlier that summer, likely from Lone Star tick larvae.
How the allergy forms
Alpha-gal syndrome develops after bites from the Lone Star tick, which can alter the immune system’s response to alpha-gal, a sugar found in meat from mammals. Once sensitised, people may react after eating beef, pork or lamb.
Symptoms can include rashes, nausea and vomiting. Scientists have long suspected that, in severe cases, the reaction could progress to anaphylaxis, though no fatal case had previously been confirmed.
“The important information for the public is: First, that severe abdominal pain occurring 3 to 5 hours after eating beef, pork or lamb should be investigated as a possible episode of anaphylaxis; and, second, that tick bites that itch for more than a week or larvae of ticks often called ‘chiggers’ can induce or increase sensitization to mammalian-derived meat,” Platts-Mills said according to Science Daily.
A growing concern
Researchers noted factors that may have intensified the reaction, including alcohol, pollen exposure and exercise. They also warned that expanding deer populations are helping Lone Star ticks spread.
“It is important that both doctors and patients who live in an area of the country where Lone Star ticks are common should be aware of the risk of sensitization,” Platts-Mills said.
The case has been published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice with the family’s consent.
Sources: Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Science Daily
