Texas

It is the spring to summer months. You are in the southeastern, south central, and mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. White tail deer are abundant. A few people develop a disease with an incubation period 1-2 weeks presenting with fever, malaise, myalgias, headaches, and chills. A few have nausea, vomiting, arthralgias, and cough. A minority have rash or neurologic symptoms. Labs show leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, and elevated liver enzymes.

Challenge: It's easy to blame the bug above, but really, it's just a messenger. Don't shoot the messenger! Who's the culprit?

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