Norman Beatty

M.D. | Assistant Professor University of Florida

Gainesville FL

Dr. Norman Beatty studies neglected tropical diseases, such as Chagas disease, Leishmaniasis, cysticercosis and snake envenomation.

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Biography

Dr. Norman Beatty is an assistant professor in the Department of Infectious Diseases and Global Medicine and member of the Emerging Pathogens Institute. He focuses on neglected tropical diseases, such as Chagas disease, Leishmaniasis, Cysticercosis, Snake Envenomation, Hansen’s disease (Leprosy), and Vibriosis. His research is centered on Latin American health equity and Chagas disease in the United States and Florida where Dr. Beatty's team is researching the prevalence of Chagas disease among at-risk populations, including those who may be exposed to the kissing bug vector here in the United States. He also studies wildlife and companion animal Trypanosoma cruzi infection in Florida and vector-borne diseases such as tick-borne and mosquito-borne infections, including Ehrlichiosis, Rickettsiosis and Borreliosis.

Areas of Expertise

Borreliosis

Ehrlichiosis

Tick-borne Diseases

Snake Envenomation

Leishmaniasis

Tropical Diseases

Neglected Tropical Diseases

Chagas Disease

Cysticercosis

Kissing Bug

Mosquito-borne Infections

Rickettsiosis

Media Appearances

Hurricanes appear to be flooding Southwest Florida beaches with 'flesh-eating bacteria'

WGCU online

2024-10-21

A day at the beach is all about sunshine and rainbows, but for some beachgoers the effects of climate change turned what was to be a fine day into one of the last of their lives. Several of the people who died during the weeks after Hurricane Ian made landfall in Lee County on September 28, 2022, began showing signs of illness a week or two into October.

A medical mystery: Why does Central Florida see so many leprosy cases?

Tampa Bay Times online

2024-06-05

In an open-air barn at the edge of the University of Florida, veterinarian Juan Campos Krauer examines a dead armadillo’s footpads and ears for signs of infection. Its claws are curled tight and covered in blood. Campos Krauer thinks it was struck in the head while crossing a nearby road.

Leprosy is here

Explore online

2024-03-27

He’d been to four dermatologists before traveling to the University of Florida, where he described patches of skin feeling “loose” — almost dead. The rash that covered his torso and limbs in reddish-purple spots hadn’t responded to the steroids and antibiotics the previous doctors prescribed. Worse, his legs felt hot and swollen, tingling with what felt like electrical shocks, and the loss of feeling in his feet was spreading to his arms.

Social

Articles

Snake envenomation in Florida: a 20-year analysis of epidemiology and clinical outcomes at a tertiary medical centre

Transactions of The Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

River C. Grace, et. al

2025-01-03

Venomous snakes are among the most lethal animals worldwide and envenomation survivors face lifelong morbidities. Envenomation is colloquially considered highly prevalent in the US state of Florida, yet envenomation trends here are currently unassessed.

Climate change and Trypanosoma cruzi transmission in North and central America

The Lancet Microbe

Colin Forsyth, et. al

2024-10-01

Trypanosoma cruzi is a protozoan parasite that causes Chagas disease in humans. Transmission of T cruzi by triatomine vectors is dependent on diverse environmental and socioeconomic factors. Climate change, which is disrupting patterns of human habitation and land use, can affect the epidemiology of Chagas disease by influencing the distribution of vector and host species.

Oral Chagas Disease in Colombia—Confirmed and Suspected Routes of Transmission

Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease

Norman L. Beatty, et. al

2024-01-04

Oral transmission of the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi is one mode of acquisition that can occur among those living or traveling to endemic regions. Increasing awareness of oral transmission is occurring, and some regions are now showing increased frequency via the oral route. Concerns for oral transmission of T. cruzi were first mentioned by Carlos Chagas and then experientially confirmed in 1921 with the oral consumption of blood trypomastigotes and then with triatomine feces in 1933.