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Two Ottawa women picked up parasites while swimming off a beach near Andrew Haydon Park, prompting city health officials to investigate. Elizabeth Strachan, 68, said she and Mary Cox, 59, discovered they were covered in welts that looked like large mosquito bites after taking a dip in the Ottawa River on Tuesday. She said Queensway Carleton Hospital doctors told Ms. Cox the painful spots were the result of parasites in the water. Ms. Strachan said it’s the first time she has encountered the problem in the 26 years she’s been swimming in the river. She said a City of Ottawa health official told her the cause may be excretions from snails that eat the feces of infected ducks. The official collected snails from the scene for testing, she said. A city spokesman said officials were aware of the problem and were looking into it.
RIVERKEEPER’S COMMENTS
Do not be alarmed by this news story. This parasite is commonly known as swimmers itch and there are no human health risks to be concerned about. An infected person will suffer from itchy “mosquito bite” like sores that will last from 2 days to one week. I grew up on Trout Lake, the headwaters of the Mattawa River and our family is very familiar with swimmers itch. It is not in the water every day and some people are much more susceptible. Children often get it worse because they play in shallow waters for long periods of time. Swimmers itch is common in lakes around the Outaouais and if you swim in Meech Lake or Lac Phillipe you will often see warning signs posted at the beach on days the itch has been reported in the water. If you get swimmers itch I recommend plenty of Calamine lotion and an antihistamine to relieve the itch. To prevent the itch I recommend putting a generous layer of vaseline or mineral oil on your skin and avoiding shallow water as much as possible.
For more information on swimmers itch:
wikipedia
factsheet
bchealthguide
brochure from Edmonton Public Health Service