What does a tick bite look like. What is the danger of a tick bite: symptoms in humans and possible complications. The only way to know if it's an encephalitis tick or not

The first 2 diseases (tick-borne encephalitis and borreliosis) are the most common, the rest are diagnosed much less frequently. Some ticks can be carriers of several infections at once, and, as a result, infect a person with several diseases at once.

How does a tick bite

Female ticks can stay on the skin from several hours to a week, while males are able to stick for a short time, making small bites. Therefore, for example, if a person saw on his skin not a sucking, but simply a crawling tick, it is likely that the tick still inflicted a bite.

Where and when are you most likely to get a tick bite?

The greatest danger of contracting a serious disease from a tick bite is people living in endemic areas for diseases, as well as those who visit these areas during a special period - from May to mid-June and from late August to late September.

But the danger of being attacked by ticks persists throughout the warm season when visiting almost any forest area, parks and other areas where there is grass and shady shelters. You can even get a tick bite in your country house or in the adjacent territory of your private house, if the grass is not mowed there.

Maximum number of bites from infected ticks
registered annually in Siberia, the Urals and the Volga region. However, a considerable number of those bitten annually seek medical help in almost all regions of Russia, including the Crimea and the Caucasus.

What parts of the body do ticks mostly bite?

Ticks are localized in the grass mainly at a height of 30 cm, and cling to the legs of those who pass by. Most often, they accumulate on the grass along the paths, smelling the people passing here. Sometimes they climb shrubs and lower branches of trees.

Once on the human body, the tick begins to look for places with thin skin, which is easier to bite through, so most often it sticks in the area:

• groin,
• abdomen and lower back,
• armpits
• chest,
• ears and neck,
• scalp.

If a tick bite is suspected and for prevention purposes, it is these places that should be most carefully examined after visiting the forest and park.

What does a tick bite look like?

Signs of a tick bite in humans are sometimes limited to only a small reddish spot and swelling in the wound area, and after a few days the skin takes on a normal appearance. Under the influence of saliva and microtrauma, which the tick inflicts with its mouth apparatus, a slight inflammation and a local allergic reaction occur on the skin. There is no pain, but in some cases a slight itching may be present.

Seeking a doctor is necessary in any case, even if there are no negative reactions from the body. The course of the first stages of dangerous diseases is sometimes hidden, in addition, some diseases have a long incubation period. Only a blood test will confirm the absence of the disease.

Signs of an allergic reaction to a tick bite

An allergy occurs in response to tick saliva getting into the wound. The individual reaction of the body depends on the state of health in general. The consequences of tick bites are more severe in allergy sufferers, children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems. You can remove a moderate allergic reaction with the help of antihistamines.

Common signs of allergies:

• weakness;
• drowsiness;
• aches in the joints;
• headache;
• nausea;
• dizziness,
• temperature increase;
• itching and rash in the area of ​​​​the bite and on other parts of the body.

With a strong individual allergic reaction, anaphylactic shock may occur, which is preceded by:

• difficulty breathing;
• hallucinations;
• angioedema (rapid and massive swelling of the face, throat, or extremities);
• loss of consciousness.

Anaphylactic shock can be controlled with the administration of prednisolone and adrenaline. If the symptoms after a tick bite indicate a severe allergic reaction, an urgent emergency call is necessary, otherwise a fatal outcome is possible.

Signs of the development of tick-borne encephalitis

The incubation period for tick-borne encephalitis can last from 4 to 14 days. During this period, the infected person does not have any external health problems. Then the temperature rises sharply to 38-39 ° C, the patient has a fever, appetite disappears, muscle and eye pain appears, nausea or vomiting, severe headache.

Then comes remission, during which the patient feels some relief. This is the second phase of the disease, during which the nervous system is affected. Subsequently, meningitis, encephalitis, paralysis may develop. If left untreated, death is likely.

The problem is that the signs of the disease in the initial stage are often confused with the flu and acute respiratory infections, so they do not go to the doctor, but self-medicate. When a high temperature appears after a detected or suspected tick bite, time should not be missed - a blood test and hospital treatment are necessary.

Symptoms of borreliosis

If a tick carrying borreliosis has bitten, the bite site takes on the appearance of a specific erythema, which gradually increases to 10-20 cm, and sometimes up to 60 cm in diameter. The erythema patch may be round, oval, or irregular in shape. The victim may experience burning, itching and pain at the site of the bite, but more often the first signs are limited to erythema alone.

After some time, a saturated red border forms along the contour of the spot, while the border itself looks slightly swollen. In the center, the erythema becomes pale white or cyanotic. After a few days, a crust and scar form in the bite area, which disappear without a trace after about 2 weeks.

The incubation period before the onset of the first symptoms ranges from several days to 2 weeks. Then comes the first stage of the disease, which lasts from 3 to 30 days. During this period, the patient experiences muscle aches, headache, weakness, fatigue, sore throat, runny nose, stiffness of the neck muscles, nausea. Then, for some time, the disease can go into a latent form up to several months, during which the heart and joints are affected.

Unfortunately, erythema is often mistaken for a local allergic reaction, without attaching much importance to it. And the malaise during the first stage of the disease is attributed to a cold or overwork at work. The disease flows into a latent form, and openly declares itself after a few months, when serious harm has already been done to the body.

Signs of the development of other diseases

An increase in temperature to 38°C and above may indicate the beginning of the development of any of the tick-borne infections. It is important to remember that a symptom such as fever does not occur immediately after a bite. The incubation period of some diseases can last up to 14 days (ehrlichiosis, hemorrhagic fever), or up to 21 days (tularemia).

Against the background of a high temperature, the following symptoms may indicate the onset of the disease:

• heart palpitations and pressure surges;
• sore throat, tongue lining and runny nose;
• anorexia, nausea and vomiting;
• swollen lymph nodes and a rash on the face (typhus);
• nosebleeds, abdominal pain, diarrhea (tularemia);
• chills, sweating, clouding of consciousness, lower back pain (hemorrhagic fever).

After a tick bite, it is necessary to measure the temperature daily for 2 weeks and monitor the state of health: any changes that appear cannot be ignored.

First aid for a tick bite

You should also consult a doctor if a trace of a possible tick bite has been found on the skin or if the signs of infection of any of the tick-borne infections described above appear. If necessary, after the examination, the doctor prescribes an appropriate course of treatment with the use of anti-inflammatory and antibacterial drugs or recommends immunotherapy.

Taking antibiotics after a tick bite is not always justified. If it is impossible to immediately consult a doctor, for the purpose of emergency prevention, it is better to take immunomodulators (for example, iodantipyrine). Allergy sufferers can take antihistamines.

One of the main tasks of a person after a tick bite is to carefully monitor their own condition in order to be able to detect the symptoms of a disease that could have been infected by a bite. Ticks are able to carry many infections (not only tick-borne encephalitis and borreliosis pathogens), and the diseases caused by such pathogens can lead to irreversible disability and even death of a bitten person.

What infections can you get from a tick bite?

But to distinguish a tick bite from the bite of any other blood-sucking or stinging arthropod is very simple. The tick never bites quickly and never tries to hide immediately after piercing the skin. Its task is to feed on blood, and the nutrition itself usually lasts several days, but not less than 10-15 hours. Therefore, almost always at the site of the bite, the attached tick itself is found. If it is not there, then someone else has bitten it.

The photo below shows a typical ixodid tick bite:

On a note

According to ICD-10, a tick bite is assigned the code W57 - "Bite or sting by non-poisonous insects or other non-poisonous arthropods."

On a note

Directly under the skin or into various cavities of the body - deep into the nose, into the ears - ticks do not climb. Accordingly, they do not live here and do not cause corresponding pathologies.

The first symptoms of tick-borne encephalitis

The earliest symptoms of tick-borne encephalitis are nonspecific and do not allow a person to confidently distinguish it from many other infectious diseases.

So, at the end of the incubation period appear:

• Typical febrile syndrome with fever, malaise, pain in the muscles and in the head;
• sleep disorders;
• Loss of appetite.

With encephalitis of the European subtype, such a fever can last 2-3 days, and then passes, and the person believes that these were some kind of mild form of SARS. However, after a week of remission, the second, meningeal or encephalitic phase begins with damage to the membranes of the brain and spinal cord and the development of neurological symptoms, which include:

• inability to turn the neck;
• Severe throbbing headaches;
• Loss of consciousness;
• convulsions;
• Paralysis;
• Violations of the sensitivity of the skin.

These symptoms are accompanied by fever, usually more severe than in the first phase. Over time, they intensify and, if left untreated, often lead to the death of the patient.

Encephalitis of the Far Eastern subtype proceeds without remissions and division into phases. At the end of the incubation period, fever develops, often with a sharp jump in temperature to 38-39 ° C. On the third or fourth day, symptoms of damage to the nervous tissue appear, they quickly increase, and on the 4th-5th day, if left untreated, death occurs.

Encephalitis of the Siberian subtype is clinically similar to the Far East, but may develop somewhat more slowly. With it, recovery occurs more often even in the absence of treatment (sometimes with residual health disorders).

Lyme borreliosis symptoms

Symptoms of Lyme borreliosis in most cases are also non-specific: the disease begins with fever, malaise and muscle pain, which can be mistaken for SARS or signs of food poisoning. Sometimes, already at an early stage, this set is supplemented by the stiffness of the neck muscles - a person has to turn the entire upper body in order to look sideways.

Perhaps the most definitive sign of Lyme disease is erythema migrans annulare, a prominent red ring on the skin around the bite site. It develops in 65-80% of patients and sometimes appears earlier than fever. Its development is very characteristic: redness at the site of the bite gradually expands to neighboring tissues, a large spot forms, until a ring of normal skin color suddenly appears around the bump itself. The photo shows what it looks like:

This ring can grow up to 20-25 cm in diameter, the skin at the site of redness can itch, peel off, sometimes even die.

In some people, the same erythema appears on other parts of the body where there are no bites - they are associated with an allergic reaction of the body to the pathogen and its antigens.

Ring erythema keeps on the skin for several weeks, sometimes until the end of the disease. Sometimes it may not be visible if it is, for example, on the back, and therefore another person should check the bite site.

A few days after the first symptoms of borreliosis appear, other specific signs may appear:

1. Conjunctivitis;
2. Photophobia;
3. Hepatitis;
4. Hives.

After about a month, these symptoms are joined by manifestations of meningitis and lesions of internal organs: facial muscle paresis, memory lapses, joint pain, chorea. Even later, if treatment has not been started, arthritis, bursitis, atrophic acrodermatitis and other syndromes develop.

In some cases, the first phases of the disease are asymptomatic, and severe lesions develop unexpectedly. As a result, a person with borreliosis does not see the connection between these symptoms and a tick bite, does not inform the doctor about it, and he cannot make a correct diagnosis.

First steps to take when symptoms appear

With the likelihood of developing borreliosis and tick-borne encephalitis, it is unacceptable to rely on self-diagnosis, and even more so - on treatment at home. If you feel any discomfort after a tick bite (as well as when erythema migrans appears), you should consult a doctor as soon as possible. An initial consultation can be obtained from a therapist, and he will already refer the patient to an infectious disease specialist.

When the first symptoms of the disease appear, all tests that are carried out in such cases will be indicative. If encephalitis is suspected, the patient may be referred for an immunological analysis and a complete blood count. So, already on the 3rd-4th day of illness, acute-phase immunoglobulins of class M (IgM) are detected in the blood, confirming the development of TBE.

A general blood test indicates the development of tick-borne encephalitis when leukopenia and thrombocytopenia are detected, and the amount of liver enzymes also increases.

To diagnose borreliosis, the following tests can be performed:

• Immunoassay for the content of immunoglobulins of classes M and G in the blood;
• Immunoblot - with it, species-specific proteins for Borrelia are detected in the blood. By itself, this analysis is not representative, but when carried out in parallel with an immunological study, it confirms its result;
• Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is an addition to the previous two tests. In this case, the cerebrospinal or joint fluid is examined for the presence of bacteria. The material sampling procedure consists in puncture (puncture) of the spinal cartilage and fluid sampling. The procedure is very painful.

The results of immunoassay, as the most informative study, are deciphered as follows:

• Less than 10 U / l IgG and less than 18 U / l IgM - the result is negative. Either there is no infection, or the test was taken too early (even before the start of the immune response);
• 10-15 U/l IgG and 18-22 U/l IgM - a questionable result, but infection may develop;
• Over 15 U / l IgG and over 22 U / l IgM - the result is positive. Either a disease develops, or these are preserved antibodies after another disease - syphilis, mononucleosis, and some others.

The results of the tests should be deciphered only by a doctor. He will decide on the start of treatment. If encephalitis is detected, the patient is prescribed treatment in a hospital (sometimes an intensive care unit is required), with borreliosis, depending on the stage and condition of the patient, therapy is carried out both at home and in the hospital.

Methods for early diagnosis of tick-borne infections

Given the danger of tick-borne infections, their severe consequences and the complexity of the treatment of tick-borne encephalitis, in some cases it is advisable not to wait for the onset of symptoms of the disease, but to take preventive measures immediately after a tick bite. This is true provided that the tick has bitten a person in a region with a high incidence of tick-borne encephalitis and borreliosis.

If an unvaccinated person in a region dangerous for encephalitis is bitten by an infected tick, there is a chance that the victim will develop this disease.

It makes no sense to donate blood for analysis before the first symptoms of tick-borne encephalitis and borreliosis appear (or rather, in the first 2 weeks after the bite). There will be so few pathogens, their antigens and specific immunoglobulins that it will not be possible to reliably interpret the result of such an analysis.

On a note

Specific prophylaxis today has been developed only for tick-borne encephalitis. People living in epidemiologically dangerous regions, or traveling here, are doing, which with a probability of about 96% will protect against the development of the disease when the pathogen is transmitted from a tick. To date, this is the most effective way to prevent TE.

Emergency prevention of borreliosis is not carried out: for those people who do get sick, this disease is relatively easy to cure. For this reason, even if a person has been vaccinated against tick-borne encephalitis, one should carefully monitor one's own condition after a tick bite - the vaccine does not protect against borreliosis, and therefore, when the disease develops, it is important to recognize it in time.

The prevention of the bites themselves is also important:

Practice shows that even people who are often in nature, if these rules are followed, are almost never bitten by ticks and do not get sick with the corresponding diseases.

What threatens a tick bite: possible consequences and first aid

First aid for a tick bite

Hello dear readers! A few days ago, my husband returned from a hiking trip and told a scary story that prompted me to write this post. My family and I live in the Rostov region and very often my husband goes with a camera “for new shots”. Last year, in May, one of the trophies was a tick bite, which we survived with a certain amount of hysteria.

According to Rospotrebnadzor, by May 5, 2017, 31,000 people applied for medical help for tick bites, which is 1.8 times less than last year.

This time there were no bites so far, but the prospect that arose on the last trip, let's say, is promising. During the whole campaign, he and his friend did nothing but remove ticks from their clothes and shake off their berets. And at night, in a tent, they found a pair of bloodsuckers right under the sleeping bag. After reading a bunch of literature, I created a summary of the main points that you need to know if you or someone close to you is at risk and may be bitten by a tick.

Types of ticks. What ticks are dangerous

To date, more than 48 thousand species of ticks are known to science. Can you imagine?! Most of them have not been studied, and every year scientists discover more and more new groups. We are interested in Ixodes ticks (Ixodes), because. two representatives of this family pose a direct threat to people - Ixodes persulcatus(taiga tick) and Ixodes ricinus(dog or European forest tick). So not all bloodsuckers are carriers of terrible infections, and if an unwanted guest is found on your body, you should not immediately faint. Moreover, even if the tick is infected, the probability of the disease is not one hundred percent.

Tick ​​activity

I dug up a picture on the Internet that very well illustrates the period of activity of ticks by months:


The first ticks wake up at 6-8 degrees Celsius, and hibernate at the first frost. Need to know: tick activity is high in spring and summer. As soon as the sun warmed the earth and greenery appeared, we immediately remember the ticks and turn on the high vigilance mode.

What does a tick look like (photo)

The taiga tick lives in the Asian and a number of regions of the European part of our country. His brother-in-arms, Ixodes ricinus, is more likely to meet someone who, like our family, settled in southern Russia. Here is a comparative photo of all varieties of this instance:

Ixodes Ricinus. Male, nymph, female and tick larva

I showed my husband a photo, he said that he often took off the trousers of males than females. I also wondered why some of the mites are black, while others have a reddish tinge. All ticks of this species have a powerful shell and four pairs of legs. The reddish hue of the female is due to the fact that the integuments of the back are able to stretch strongly and absorb hundreds of times more blood than a hungry tick weighs.

This is such a pretty female Ixodes

To our great happiness, we did not meet a female drunk with blood, but I will also show a photo. For comparison and greater warning. God forbid you face this:

Female ticks feed from 6 to 10 days. Now let's look at the male. It is smaller and not as bloodthirsty as its "weak" half - it sticks for a short time (less than an hour). Take a close look at these photos and remember what the male and female Ixodes ricinus look like. They have no eyes, but the strongest sense of smell: prey can be smelled ten meters away.

By the way, if you were bitten by a male and you did not immediately notice him, then the situation may become more complicated. After drinking blood, the tick disappears and you are rewarded with a reddened place on the skin, the origin of which you can only guess. If you do not find out the nature of the occurrence of this spot in time, you risk being in a dangerous position.

Where do ticks live

Ixodid ticks love damp and shaded areas. Most often they live in ravines, on forest edges, on the sides of forest paths. At the moment, one must be aware of the danger even when going for a walk in the city park. Many of my friends argued and claimed that ticks jump from trees. They don't jump at all! It has been scientifically proven that ticks do not rise above 1.5 meters. In anticipation of the victim, they climb onto the stems of grasses, trunks of shrubs and wait, and then grab their paws for everything that moves. Ticks can crawl over the body for some time and end up on the head, and this is how the erroneous opinion appeared that ticks live on trees.

Ticks in dogs and cats

A very important point that I would not like to miss when writing my abstract is the presence of ticks in pets. Owners of dogs and cats are at particular risk in the summer. If your pet does not live permanently in an apartment, be prepared for the fact that you will have to face this problem closely. What diseases causes a tick in a dog, just like a tick in a cat, I will not describe. I will also not give terrible photographs of poor animals bitten by ticks. Just remember - you should know that through our smaller brothers you can get a lot of unpleasant surprises.

What does a tick bite look like (photo)

The area around the bite may be pink or red, depending on the reaction of the body. A recess will be visible in the center. My husband was bitten by a tick early in the morning when he climbed into the grass to take a picture of a dragonfly. Usually, Andrei (that's my husband's name) tucked jeans into socks if he didn't wear berets. That morning I hoped for a chance. It was lucky that the “beast” was noticed quickly and pulled out without problems.

A red spot formed on my husband's leg after a tick bite. He circled him immediately with a pen, for control, because. if the redness increased, you would have to go to the doctor again. If there is no handle, then be sure to take a picture of the bite on the phone.

After it pierces the skin, it is immediately attached inside the wound with the help of special saliva, which both anesthetizes and fixes the proboscis in the wound. That is why a person does not feel the moment of a bite.

Tick ​​bite symptoms

Under the influence of tick saliva and microtrauma, a rounded reddening may occur on the skin of a bitten person. Sometimes, if a person is prone to allergies, angioedema or anaphylactic shock occurs. The most common symptoms that can be noticed after 2-3 hours after being bitten by a tick:

• redness of the bite site;
• weakness, drowsiness;
• chills;
• aches in the joints;
• photophobia.

But in general, everything is individual, and depends, to a greater extent, on your physical condition. In healthy adults, everything goes unnoticed until the moment they find a tick on themselves. Changes that may occur later: fever, swollen lymph nodes, headaches or muscle pain, body rash. Different tick-borne infections have different symptoms, so symptoms appear from a few days to two weeks after infection. By the way, it is impossible to distinguish a seemingly healthy tick from an infected one, and the longer it sucks blood, the higher the risk of infection.

What should I do if bitten by a tick

Do not panic. I'm serious. Remember one simple rule: if you are bitten by a tick - DON'T PANIC! If you can quickly get qualified help - go ahead! If not, everything in our life sooner or later happens for the first time. With confident hands, we remove the tick from the body. There are several ways to do this.

How to remove a tick

1. Fingers. But not naked. Wrap them in a bandage, gauze, or use a sock. It is important to minimize contact of the tick with unprotected skin. Grasping the tick as close to its proboscis as possible, carefully unscrew (like a screw) from the skin. It doesn't matter which way you twist it, as long as you keep it parallel to the bite during extraction.
2. Use thread. Make a loop and loop it over the base of the tick's stinger. Gently tighten and twist the insect out of the skin. Do everything calmly, without sudden movements. Usually 1-3 turns and the tick is removed entirely along with the proboscis.
3. Use special tools such as tweezers, Klinver, Tick Nipper, lasso pen, etc. But you need to purchase them in advance at a pharmacy or a travel store.

Of the above methods, the most effective is the last, and the most risky is the first. I have not begun to describe crazy methods, but know what they are: extracting a tick with a syringe, creating a vacuum; smothering a tick with oil; use of soap, etc. No matter how you remove the tick, always remember - you can’t tear off the head. There are salivary glands, and in them all the evil of the world. If you still screwed up and the sting remains in the skin, then - DON'T PANIC! Fill the place of the tick bite with alcohol, burn the needle, lubricate it with alcohol and carefully remove the remains from the wound, like a splinter.

I really liked the video on how to pull out a tick with a thread, be sure to watch:

Notice how calmly and quickly the father pulled this arachnid out of his son's cheek.
Well done, this is how you should behave when a child is bitten by a tick!

Where to store the tick

After all the manipulations done, you should have a reddened wound treated with alcohol (iodine, cologne), a live tick (preferably) and washed hands (because tick-borne encephalitis can be transmitted through the gastrointestinal tract). If the "little animal" is alive, we place it in a test tube, vial, any jar with air access. My husband wrapped it in a napkin until he got to the pharmacy. There I bought a syringe with a needle, broke off the tip, and placed the tick inside. In this state, Andrey had a chance to keep the insect alive for two days, it is during this period that the tick should be delivered to a special laboratory where tests are carried out for infection with tick-borne encephalitis viruses. To be completely sure that your new friend will not die before analysis, you can place him in a clean container (test tube, jar, vial) on a piece of damp gauze, close tightly and place on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. Take it to the lab as soon as possible. If the tick is dead, it must be burned or poured with boiling water, because. dead specimens are useless for research.

Where to donate a tick

The tick must be handed over alive to a special laboratory. If an infection is detected in the laboratory, then anti-tick immunoglobulin is administered to the patient. This type of treatment is called "emergency seroprophylaxis" and it is relevant in the first three days after infection. If it is not possible to use immunoglobulin, then antiviral drugs may be prescribed.

Speaking of "special laboratories". My husband, after he turned to the emergency department, received the following recommendations: we pick up the tick, we will hand it over to the SES, and you have a direct road to the emergency room. As it turned out later, there are no laboratories in our city. A week later, we called the sanitary and epidemiological station, gave the name and wanted to know the result. The answer was: we do not do tests, we need a tick for statistics. So keep in mind that in order to get an analysis for the presence of diseases in your bloodsucker, take it to the laboratory, if there is one, of course, and do not give it to the emergency doctor.

The emergency room is also an interesting story. The doctor immediately issued: “Did you pull it out? What came to me? After 10 days, the temperature will not rise - everything is fine, but it will rise - then come back. This is a science for those who read this post - do educational program and arm yourself with knowledge. So to say, help yourself: 10 days after the bite, we donate blood for borreliosis and encephalitis. Research method - PCR. After 2 weeks - for immunoglobulins M to encephalitis, after 3 weeks - for immunoglobulins M to borreliosis. With results of analyzes (positive) we go to the doctor. We don’t even go, but we fly with a “bullet”, because the same borreliosis is very well treated if dealt with in the early stages.

What diseases do ticks carry?

Ticks transmit a lot of different filth. But among other things, I will highlight the main ones:

• Tick-borne borreliosis (Lyme disease)
• Tick-borne viral encephalitis
• Tick-borne typhus
• Hemorrhagic fever

In addition to those above, which are more or less well known, there are still babesiosis, rickettsiosis, granulocytic anaplasmosis, monocytic ehrlichiosis and other difficult-to-pronounce infections. The causative agents of all this filth (arboviruses) live in the tick's saliva, but not everyone and not a complete set. So there is a risk of disease, but not 100%. Most likely (and worst of all) to earn encephalitis and borreliosis (Lyme disease).

Encephalitis

Tick-borne encephalitis leads to inflammation of the brain. No matter how cynical it may sound, but with an excellent scenario, you will get off with a slight fright, with a good one you will die. But most likely you will be paralyzed. Most likely hands, or one of them. It's forever and doesn't work. In addition, you may become blind and/or deaf. If you are bitten by a tick in European lands, most likely it will cost. In our country, ticks are not particularly infected - according to various sources, from a few percent to a few tenths of a percent, and 2 people out of 1000 die from tick-borne encephalitis. THIS DOES NOT MEAN WHAT YOU ARE LUCKY. If you were bitten by a tick in Siberia or the Far East, everything is much worse. You can get Far Eastern encephalitis, and out of 100 cases, 80 die from it.

It is possible to determine the presence of encephalitis only after 10 days by donating blood for analysis using the PCR method. The disease itself begins acutely, accompanied by chills, severe headache, a sharp rise in temperature to 38-39 degrees, nausea, and vomiting. Concerned about muscle pain, which is most often localized in the neck and shoulders, thoracic and lumbar back, limbs.

Borreliosis

It all starts with a high temperature and such beautiful rings at the place where the tick bite was found (scientifically - erythema). Then paralysis, only this time the problems are not with the hands, but with the face. Then problems with the joints (for example, wild pains in them, to such an extent that it is impossible to move), with the heart, vision, hearing. Then the skin becomes thinner, becomes dry like parchment paper and goes bluish spots. In general, there are many problems, and everyone is so different. Some citizens suffering from chronic borreliosis claim that it is worse than encephalitis. True, they assure healthy, and not those who have chronic encephalitis.

An important point that you should remember when faced with ticks: you can get a disease not only through an insect bite. Infection can occur when a tick is crushed at the time of removal from the body of an animal or person, if the mucous membrane of the eyes, nose, lips, or damaged areas of the body is touched with unwashed hands. You can not go hiking yourself, but simply take friends at home who bring ticks with them on their clothes. I know a case where a tick was brought into a house with wildflowers. You can also get a "gift" with the consumption of raw milk of goats, sheep or cows, in which the virus is in the milk during the period of the mass attack of ticks. Moreover, not only milk will be contagious, but also products made from it: cottage cheese, sour cream, etc.

If you have encephalitis / borreliosis, it is not contagious to others - you can sneeze on them as much as you want. But if you have encephalitis and you are a breastfeeding mother, there is a chance you can pass it on to your baby through your milk.

What is the most effective tick repellent?

First of all, it is the right preparation and control of the situation. Traveling to an area with an increased risk of encountering ticks should be vaccinated against tick-borne viral encephalitis. It is three-stage, they will prick three times at a certain interval. If you have already had encephalitis, then you are immune. Several vaccines against encephalitis are registered in Russia. If you have a choice, take an imported vaccine. Vaccination can be done in the vaccination room on the basis of the clinic after consulting a doctor. AND DON'T SUBSCRIBE TO DIVORCE at the same time get vaccinated against hepatitis, flu, hell in a mortar. Vaccinations are not an area where wholesale is a profitable business. It is impossible to vaccinate against borreliosis. And then if you were already sick, nothing prevents you from picking it up again.

Important! It is necessary to complete the entire vaccination course against tick-borne encephalitis 2 weeks before leaving for an unfavorable territory.

Tick ​​clothing

We choose clothes that are smooth, light, as much as possible reducing the possibility of ticks crawling under it. Smooth - to make it harder to catch on, light - to make it easier to see a dangerous "fellow traveler". Our friend stubbornly tried to somehow prove that ticks are more likely to cling to white and light-colored fabric. So, this is fiction!

The visual apparatus of ticks does not allow to distinguish colors, but the sense of smell is so developed that they are able to smell a person 10 meters away.

Further, what is above the belt (t-shirt, jacket, sweater) is well tucked into trousers. Trousers are tucked into berets, boots. If there are no high shoes - right into your socks, it looks ridiculous, but it saves the best! The sleeves should have tight-fitting cuffs, if not, then we sew in an elastic band or tuck them into gloves. On our heads we have a good cap that protects our hair and neck, or a hood, well, at worst, a scarf, the ends of which should be tucked under the collar. Headwear is a must!

Treatment of clothes from ticks

The most effective remedy for ticks is the frequency of inspections of one's own body while traveling. But for greater safety, you can use tick repellants. The acaricidal treatment of the tissues covering you is necessary, but in my opinion it is non-spontaneous, it quickly disappears, so it ends quickly. A good remedy for ticks is not cheap. But there is also a budget option: essential oil. Having shoveled a bunch of information about this summer misfortune, I concluded that the essential oil is a very effective remedy for ticks. So before the trip, we dilute the oil with water and puff on ourselves. You can also lubricate the hands and neck.

• Lavender- the most amazing thing is that we love the smell of lavender, but mites cannot stand it. Moreover, this also applies to midges and mosquitoes.
• Pennyroyal This essential oil is toxic to insects and is an effective natural repellant!
• Lemongrass Lemongrass oil is obtained from the tropical lemongrass plant known as "Cymbopogon". It has a bright citrus scent and is a natural flea and tick repellent.
• Eucalyptus Eucalyptus oil can be used alone or in combination with lemongrass oil to deter any insects.
• Lemon Lemon essential oil contains a compound known as limolene. This mixture is considered especially effective during the fight against fleas and other insects.

You will smell a mile away, scaring off not only ticks, but also giving pleasure to your travel companions.

Inspections during the hike

Returning to where we started. The most effective remedy for ticks is frequent and careful inspection of clothing. My husband made everyone stop every hour and look at each other. Almost always it was justified! It usually takes a tick half an hour to get to the soft tissues and plunge its stinger into your delicate skin. Therefore, the more often you inspect clothes, the less likely he is to do so. When you return home with a light heart, once again inspect all the clothes and all the camping equipment. Every crease and every seam. Walk with a sticky roller on dark clothes so as not to miss what you missed.

In the bathroom, examine your body, even the most hidden parts of it. Remember: favorite places for ticks: behind the ears, on the neck or stomach, in the groin, under the armpits, on the inside of the elbows and knees. The size of a tick not saturated with blood is 1 - 3 mm, saturated - up to 1 cm.

And now we read like a mantra the main points you need to know:

• Not all ticks are carriers of infectious diseases
• If bitten by a tick - it's okay, the main thing is not to panic
• Ticks don't fall from trees
• The color of clothes does not matter, ticks do not see, but react to smell
• Always tuck trousers into socks
• The main defense against ticks is proper clothing and vigilance
• The tick vaccine is effective one month after vaccination
• It is not necessary to kill a bitten tick, it is needed alive for analysis
• It is recommended to destroy ticks with fire
• You need to take the tick to the laboratory within two days after the bite.
• Blood must be donated for PCR analysis
• The most terrible diseases with a tick bite make themselves felt in a week

Wish you luck! Take care of yourself and your loved ones! Mother Inga.

It always falls on a person only from a tree, for example, from an oak. However, oddly enough, this version is erroneous. Ticks tend to hide where people don't expect to see them. In thickets, on the branches of bushes, along the edges of paths in the forest, in the grass.

These blood-sucking arthropods have a very strong sense of smell and instantly “rush” at an animal or person as soon as they are nearby.

In the period from mid-spring to the first frost, ticks become more active. The most dangerous period is the end of April - July. Ticks live in forest areas and parks where there is no hot direct sunlight, and the temperature rises above twenty degrees.

Ticks are a small spider about the size of a match head. A female who has collected blood can reach the size of a pea. Ticks are absorbed into the skin of an animal or person with the help of their proboscis. The male, as a rule, does this for a short time and soon disappears on his own. The female is more dangerous. To get rid of it, the intervention of a person from outside is necessary. What a tick looks like you can see in the photo.

On the first and second photos - ticks before the bite, on the third and fourth - after.

The main thing is not to panic, so as not to do stupid things.

No need to use tweezers or tongs, the reason is the same. Only with your hands, gently and slowly try to pull the tick, but counterclockwise. You can also try to lubricate the bite site with ordinary sunflower oil and wait fifteen minutes. Perhaps this will greatly simplify the procedure for extracting the tick.

In general, try not to kill the insect so that its saliva and stomach contents cannot get into your wound, and with them a dangerous virus.

It's not worth it to get hysterical if you are bitten by a tick. Naturally, not every tick is an infected representative of the encephalitis virus. And even if the tick is contagious, it secretes a viral substance for about three days, but during this time it is quite possible to have time to get rid of it.

To protect yourself, prepare carefully before heading into the forest. Choose clothes only from dense fabrics and with long legs and sleeves. The best option is when the bottom of the pants is made with an elastic band. Naturally, the socks should only be long, and pulled over the pants. Yes, this spectacle does not look attractive. But, safety and health should come first. The neck must be completely closed.

Of course, in our time there are a lot of special tools that are designed to repel ticks. They need to treat places into which the tick can penetrate. For example, wrists, lower back, neck, ankle.

You can buy Klinver

We always look forward to spring sunshine. Unfortunately, with the first warming already at temperatures above +5 degrees, arachnids, including mites, wake up to life. For a very long time, from March to November, these tiny arachnids are active. They prefer to climb bushes to a height of 1.5 meters, next to tall grasses. They can be found in forests, city parks, grasslands, and places we love to visit. A tick bite is not painful, but its consequences, unfortunately, are very dangerous. Can this be avoided? What to do if it is found on the body? What are the symptoms after a tick bite in humans?

How a tick attacks a person

When choosing for walks the habitat of live ticks, you must definitely get dressed. You should wear long trousers, boots, clothes with long sleeves. In addition, people who are especially vulnerable to tick bites (fishermen, mushroom pickers, young children) should be protected with drugs against these insects. Such drugs can be purchased at pharmacies in the form of creams or sprays. Using the cream, you should especially carefully spread the places around the edges of the clothes: around the collar and cuffs. Often, however, this is insufficient protection, so after such a walk, a person needs to carefully examine the entire body.

What does a tick bite look like photo

The tick is a rather small insect and it is difficult to notice it at once. Look at the photo of the tick and the location of the bite to get an idea of ​​who to look for.

Types and sizes of ticks photo of a tick in the skin photo of a tick bite on the skin

How dangerous is a tick bite for a person

Not all mites spread pathogens. It is estimated that infection is between 10 and 40 percent, depending on the region. In addition, even in the case of infected bites, disease does not always occur, but the risk of infection is very high, so it should not be underestimated. Insects transmit Lyme disease (Lyme borreliosis), tick-borne encephalitis, and rarely anaplasmosis, babesiosis, or bartonellosis.

Symptoms that occur after a tick bite in humans

The first sign of Lyme disease, an infection caused by the Borrelia spirochete, is erythema migrans, appearing 7 days after the bite (it may also take up to three weeks). Erythema migrans has a characteristic appearance - blurred in the middle, it gradually fades and redness is again observed outside. In some cases, despite infection with Lyme disease, there is no or very mild erythema. Other symptoms of an infection may indicate the flu:

• enlargement of nearby lymph nodes,
• headache,
• joint and muscle pain,
• general weakness,
• fever.

The second stage occurs a few months after the bite.

Arise:

• inexplicable fatigue,
• red spots on the skin
• changes in cardiac function
• neurological and
• eye problems.

The third stage is manifested by signs of damage to the function of the brain, musculoskeletal system, cardiovascular activity. Lyme disease requires antibiotic treatment and strict monitoring studies. Usually, tetracycline antibiotics and/or penicillin are recommended for Lyme disease.
The consequence of untreated Lyme disease can be an infection of the nervous system - paralysis and / or neuritis.

Signs of an encephalitic tick bite

In turn, tick-borne encephalitis produces flu-like symptoms. In the first phase appear:

• fever,
• muscle pain,
• headaches.

Usually within a week, the human body itself fights the infection. Unfortunately, some patients develop the second stage of the disease and the appearance of neurological symptoms. Yet again,

• fever,
• severe headaches,
• May be accompanied by nausea and vomiting
• loss of consciousness,
• meningitis or encephalitis.

This can lead to inflammation of the spinal cord or brain, paresis, impaired consciousness. The outcome of the disease can be fatal, in 1-2 percent of patients. Therefore, people who often live in the forest should be vaccinated.

Bitten by a tick - what to do

What is the best way to remove a tick? In the pharmacy, you can buy a special tool and, if necessary, have it on hand. Currently on sale are suction cups, pens, plastic tweezers that facilitate the process. Very easy to use special tweezers with grooves in the corners of all sizes. Instruments must be disinfected with hydrogen peroxide or alcohol before use. We need to grab the tick as close to the skin as possible, trying not to squeeze its abdomen filled with blood, and not to push it back into our body.

Be sure to establish observation of the victim, if there are no signs of infection, erythema migrans or other diseases. If erythema migrans of the skin develops within 30 days (usually 3-7 days) of tick removal, there is no point in running laboratory tests to confirm infection. In this case, the doctor prescribes treatment - an antibiotic. Unfortunately, in some cases, erythema and other signs are less pronounced or there are no symptoms at all. Therefore, even if alarming symptoms do not appear, it is necessary to do tests. The recommended ELISA test, which is carried out after 4-6 weeks. If required, another positive Western blot test is done, which detects IgM and IgG antibodies to Lyme disease.

When bitten by an encephalitis tick

We should also not forget about the possibility of infection with tick-borne encephalitis. At the first stage of the spread of the virus in human blood occurs 7-14 days after the bite. Typical symptoms include: fever, headache, muscle pain. Signs of the first phase are observed for about a week. After several days of well-being, the second phase of the disease occurs, associated with the spread of the virus into the central nervous system. Symptoms include headaches, fever, vomiting, nausea, unconsciousness, meningitis, or encephalitis. They usually disappear after 2-3 weeks, however, complications may occur in up to 60% of patients. TBE is diagnosed by detecting IgM antibodies (detected in patients with TBE after about 7-10 days) in serum and cerebrospinal fluid and IgG (detected after about 10-14 days) in serum and cerebrospinal fluid.

First aid: how to remove a tick?

Tick ​​bites do not always require medical intervention, since in most cases the bloodsucker can fall off on its own.

tick removal step by step photo

If you are unable to properly remove the tick, see your doctor

The risk of Lyme disease is low if the tick is removed within 24-36 hours.

Treatment

Some authors recommend that if a tick from the genus Ixodes has been on the human body for a long time (this is determined by the size of the bloodsucker), a prophylactic single dose of 200 mg of doxycycline should be taken within 72 hours from the moment it was removed. Pregnant women and children under 8 years of age for whom doxycycline is not recommended may take amoxicillin. Recently, azithromycin has also been recommended, which is also approved for children and pregnant women. Be sure to check with your doctor before taking any antibiotic.
After the removal of the insect, a month of observation should pass. After this time, the following may occur:

• the so-called migratory erythema (creeping), which is usually observed from 3-30 days after a tick bite. Erythema is the first symptom of one of the tick-borne diseases - Lyme disease. Initially, erythema appears as red spots that grow rapidly. However, you should be aware that in more than half of the cases, a skin reaction does not occur,
• fever and flu-like symptoms (severe headache, muscle and joint pain, cough), which may be a sign of anaplasmosis (HGA) - tick-borne encephalitis.

After the onset of these symptoms, a person should immediately consult a doctor.

Erythema after a bite may have an allergic or toxic-inflammatory character, which does not indicate the presence of microorganisms that cause tick-borne diseases. The rash does not protrude above the skin, is warm to the touch, and usually does not cause pain or itching. This skin allergic reaction does not exceed 5 cm in diameter and disappears after a month, regardless of whether you took medication or not.

migrating erythema

migrating erythema caused by bacteria Borrelia and is one of the symptoms of a severe tick-borne disease - Lyme disease. As a rule, it appears within 7-14 days after the bite of a tick infected with borreliosis. Usually disappears spontaneously after about 1 month.

The characteristic rash resembles a blasting shield: an oval or round spot in the middle and then a white circle. Erythema ends with a red rim, which every day, "goes" further and becomes more and more. Erythema may be accompanied by influenza-like manifestations.

It is difficult to miss this type of rash, as the erythema migrans is at least 5 cm in diameter, a feature by which it is distinguished from an allergic reaction to the sting.

It should be noted, however, that only a subset of those infected (30-40 percent) develop a rash. The absence of a rash does not mean that there is no Lyme disease infection.
Erythema is not always present but, when present, forms around the bite, although it sometimes occurs elsewhere. Each patient has an individual shape, and even the color of redness.

The bite itches - what to do

As a rule, a tick bite is painless and does not manifest itself in any way. However, in some patients, after removing the blood-sucking insect, the bite site begins to itch.

Why is this happening?

Causes of itching at the site of a tick bite:

With proper treatment at an early stage of the disease, most patients achieve rapid improvement (usually within 4-6 weeks) and minimal complications.
In patients in advanced stages (second and third), treatment may also lead to significant improvement and no sequelae.
In the advanced stages of the disease, some damage may remain permanent or recover very slowly despite treatment. There may be residual facial paralysis or knee pain. Some people develop persistent muscle and joint pain, constant fatigue and impaired concentration, despite the absence of borrelia in the blood, cerebrospinal fluid and synovial fluid.