Behind medical care In Russia, more than half a million victims of tick bites are treated annually, of which 100 thousand are children.
Every year, up to 10 thousand cases of tick-borne encephalitis are registered in Russia.
The maximum peak of infection with tick-borne encephalitis occurs in spring and summer.
People who have recovered from tick-borne encephalitis develop lifelong immunity to this disease.
Often tick-borne encephalitis leaves behind unpleasant consequences. In cases of severe forms of the disease, people die or become disabled.
The tick bites through the skin and inserts a special harpoon-like outgrowth of the pharynx (hypostome) into the wound. A kind of harpoon is covered with teeth that hold the tick, so it is not so easy to pull it out.
In the case of tick-borne encephalitis, the virus enters the human blood through the saliva of the tick. Immediately from the moment of the bite, the virus enters the victim’s body. Therefore, even quick removal of a tick does not exclude infection with tick-borne encephalitis.
In the case of borreliosis, bacteria accumulate in the tick's gastrointestinal tract and begin to be released into the victim's body the moment the tick begins to feed. This usually happens 4-5 hours after the bite. Therefore, timely tick removal can prevent infection.
It is worth noting that not all ixodid ticks are contagious. However, a tick infected with the tick-borne encephalitis virus retains it throughout its life.
| Disease | The causative agent of the disease | Tick vector | What does it look like? |
| Virus from the Flavaviridae family | Ixodid ticks: I. ricinus, I. persicatus |  |
| Spirochete -Borrelia burgdoferi | Ixodid ticks:
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| Virus of the Nairovirus genus, Bunyavirus family | Ticks sort ofHyaloma
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Tick-borne encephalitis is most widespread in taiga-forest regions from Sakhalin to Karelia, the countries of Eastern and Central Europe, northern China, Mongolia, Korea, Baltic states, Scandinavia.
On average, symptoms of the disease appear 7-14 days (5-25 days) after infection. The onset of the disease is acute; more often the patient can indicate not only the day, but also the hour of onset of the disease. General symptoms:
Symptoms of the disease will depend on the stage of the disease. In total, 3 stages can be distinguished: 1) early stage, 2) stage of spread of infection 3) stage of chronic infection
severe viral infectious disease, transmitted through tick bites, characterized by fever, intoxication and bleeding. The disease belongs to a number of dangerous infectious diseases. | Do I need to call an ambulance? | |
| Not really | Why? |
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| What to do? | How? | For what? |
| 1.Take precautions | Do not touch the tick with bare hands. Wear gloves, use a plastic bag or other available means. | The saliva secreted by a tick often contains viruses and bacteria; if it gets on damaged skin, infection can occur. |
| 2. Remove the tick | Methods: 1.Using a special device (Tick Twister, The Tickkey, Ticked-Off , Trix Tick Lasso , Anti-mite, etc.) 2. Using thread 3. Using tweezers | Correct ways Tick extractions are based on the point that the tick should be twisted out of the skin, and not pulled out. Because the part where the tick bites into the skin is covered with spines. The spines are directed in the opposite direction from the tick's movement. Thus, when trying to pull out a tick, there is a high probability that part of its body will remain in the skin. Rotational movements The spines are folded along the axis of rotation and the risk of tearing off the tick's head is significantly reduced. |
| Method using specially designed devices | ||
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 Take a thin thread (sometimes you can use long strong hair) and make a loop. Place a loop over the tick and shade it at the very base. Then, holding the ends of the thread, pulling it a little, slowly and carefully begin to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise. After making a few rotations, the tick is freely removed. |
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 Use tweezers to carefully grasp the head of the tick, so as not to put pressure on its abdomen. Then you begin to turn the tick, as if you were twisting it, but do not pull or yank too much. |
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| 3. Remove the remains of the tick from the wound (if it was not possible to remove it entirely)
| Disinfect the needle (with an alcohol solution or hydrogen peroxide), or better yet, sterilize it by holding it over a flame. Then carefully remove the remains. | The development of an inflammatory process and suppuration is possible. Additionally, remaining glands and ducts inside the skin may contain viruses and continue to infect the body. |
4. Treat the bite site | You can use any antiseptic: alcohol, iodine, brilliant green, hydrogen peroxide, etc. | Prevents inflammation and suppuration of the wound. Hydrogen peroxide can also help in removing mite residues, if any. |
| 5. Vaccine administration
| Tick-borne encephalitis:
| Immunoglobulin against tick-borne encephalitis: high price, frequent allergic reactions, low efficiency, European countries do not produce it. Yodantipyrine - the drug is well tolerated, has low toxicity, and is effective against the tick-borne encephalitis virus. It is prescribed for both prevention and treatment. |
6. Send the tick for analysis 
| Place the removed tick in an airtight container. | This will help determine the tactics of further treatment. Will save you from unwanted complications. |
Before visiting potentially dangerous places Be well prepared and be attentive. Probably the most important material in anticipation of mass trips to the forest and dachas. Olga Malinovskaya, clinical laboratory diagnostics doctor and medical director of the KDL laboratory network, tells how to protect yourself as much as possible from a tick bite and where to run after a bite to find out whether you are infected or not.
Olga Malinovskaya
Ticks have an amazing ability to suck blood. Their body consists of two main systems: the digestive system and the reproductive system. When filled with blood, the torso can increase several times in size. The normal development cycle of a tick is an egg and three stages of maturity (larva, nymph and mature tick). At each stage, the tick needs to feed once within 3-10 days. The body of these arachnids has developed a huge number of mechanisms for adapting to unfavorable conditions. No power or relatively poor weather They do not kill immature forms, but put them into a “waiting mode” for better times - the tick can remain viable for about two years in a hungry state. Moreover, the tick's immune system has adapted to cohabitation with pathogens of many diseases - tick-borne encephalitis, borreliosis, piroplasmosis, ehrlichiosis.
Ticks live in forests and parks (including city ones), and there are especially many of them near water bodies. They usually go up tall grass or bushes and wait. Once on human clothing or animal fur, ticks instinctively move upward, after which they find a place with thin skin, closely spaced blood vessels and attach themselves. Ticks can be found in the folds of the groin area, behind the ears, on the scalp and neck.
Bite marks appear as redness of the skin around the site of suction. The wound is not always visible. Although the bite is painless, if the tick has stuck for more than a day and has greatly increased in volume, it can cause some discomfort on the skin - a desire to scratch the bite site or mild pain.
Ticks are primarily associated with tick-borne encephalitis. This serious disease affects the central nervous system. It can be infected in many regions of Siberia and Far East. If you plan to travel to these regions, it is better to get vaccinated in advance. However, in the Moscow region, Leningrad, Tver, Yaroslavl and Kaliningrad regions encounters with ticks often threaten borreliosis (Lyme disease). The insidiousness of this infection is that at the first stage it can be easily confused with a common viral disease: the temperature rises, muscle stiffness and pain may appear, and specific skin phenomena are often noticeable. If you do not pay attention to this, complications can affect the cardiovascular and nervous systems. Borreliosis can also cause joint damage.
The entry of Borrelia into the human body can be suspected by a specific skin reaction around the site of suction - the so-called erythema migrans (severe redness of the skin. - Note ed.), which is a change in the skin around the site of the tick bite. This usually looks like reddening of the skin increasing in diameter or a reddish ring radiating from the site of the bite. It should be noted that this symptom does not appear in 100% of cases. According to recent studies by domestic scientists, about 50% of infections can occur without the formation of erythrema - they are caused by a special type of Borrelia.
Borreliosis is treated with antibiotics. Without proper treatment, the infection can cause severe complications in the joints, cardiovascular and nervous systems.
If Borrelia enters the body, erythema and local soreness at the site of the bite may make themselves felt within 3-30 days, but on average, symptoms appear within a week. Other signs may be absent or resemble a common ARVI. During this period, the use of antibiotics is most effective.
If you find a tick embedded in yourself, you must carefully remove it. This can be done with special devices from a pharmacy or veterinary store. Tools for removing ticks from animals can also be used on people. It is undesirable to abruptly tear the tick away from the body - the proboscis may remain in the skin.
After this you need to go to the laboratory. Submit the extracted tick for analysis for infections, and check yourself. The results will suggest the direction of preventative prevention. The fact that a person is infected is confirmed by a blood test for antibodies. An antibody test should be carried out 10-14 days after the bite and later, as well as if infection with borreliosis is suspected and there are symptoms of damage to the nervous system, heart and joints. In late manifestations of the disease, a more informative diagnostic method may be not just an antibody test (immunoglobulins M and G to Borrelia), but an immunoblot: an advanced examination method with the determination of antibodies to various proteins various types Borrelia. The importance of accurate diagnosis in late manifestations of borreliosis cannot be overestimated - the prognosis for the treatment of Lyme disease at any stage is favorable.
For example, the photo below shows what a taiga tick bite looks like on human skin:
And here is a midge bite:
As you can see, by appearance bite marks in in this case not much different.
However, taking into account individual details in the appearance of tick bites on the human body makes it possible to distinguish them with a certain accuracy from the bites of other arthropods. Knowledge of the biology of ixodid ticks, including the specifics of their attacks on animals and people, also helps to distinguish between bites.
The wound caused by a puncture of the skin is covered with a crust within an hour after the tick detaches, while some swelling and redness remain.
On a note
In ordinary cases, the next day the bite site no longer itches, after 2-3 days the swelling and redness subside, and after a few more days the crust at the site of the wound peels off.
After about 10-12 days, no trace remains at the site of the tick bite.
This happens normally when infection does not occur in the bite wound and the inflammatory process does not develop, and the wound itself is not disturbed, scratched or the protective crust on it is not damaged. However, often due to various undesirable factors the situation can become complicated, which is accompanied by the appearance of additional unpleasant symptoms.
Besides:
If the lump is lubricated with pain-relieving ointment in time and not disturbed, it gradually decreases in size and completely subsides after 4-5 days.
A more dangerous situation is when, when a tick is pulled out, its body is torn off from the head (gnathosoma), as a result of which the mouthparts remain in the wound. Removing them from here is not always easy, since they are difficult to grasp even with tweezers or tweezers from a manicure set - the gnathosoma of the tick is deeply immersed in the skin, and the rupture of its body usually occurs deeper than the level of the surface of the skin.
If the detached head of the tick is not removed like a splinter, on the second or third day the tissue at the site of the bite will begin to tear, an abscess will form here, from which the remains of the tick will subsequently come out along with the oozing pus.
A painful abscess with swelling often forms. From the moment the tick comes off until the abscess ruptures and pus flows out of it, on average, 3-4 days pass; the abscess site will heal for several more days.
The picture below shows the sequence of correct twisting of the tick:
And here are photographs with examples of tick removal using various tick removers:
On a note
In all cases, ixodid ticks bite only to suck blood. They never attack a person in self-defense.
Besides:
On a note
The exception to the latter rule is the bite of the Australian paralysis tick Ixodes holocyclus. Its individuals, at all stages of their development, secrete a toxin in their saliva, leading to paralysis of the limbs in animals and people, as well as symptoms similar to those of polio (even death is possible). The first signs of paralysis after bites of these ticks appear within 6-7 hours. The species Ixodes holocyclus lives only in Australia, and in Eurasia similar situations excluded.
Photo of Ixodes holocyclus paralysis tick:
Another important sign: ticks never bite through clothing, even very thin ones.(through tights, for example). Mosquitoes, midges, horseflies, spiders can bite through thin fabrics, wasps and bees can sting, but ticks never stick to the skin through clothing.
At the same time, under loose clothing - under wide pants, shirts, T-shirts, behind the head under a hat - a tick may well bite.
Differences between a tick bite and the bites of various insects
We have already mentioned the first important difference earlier: at the site of the tick bite there remains a red spot and a clearly visible wound, which gradually becomes covered with a crust. This is in contrast to mosquito bites, in the place of which only an itchy swelling remains, but without a visible insertion site for the proboscis.
Compared to the bites of most stinging insects, spiders and centipedes, tick bites are completely painless. Even mosquitoes that inject anesthetic substances into the wound do not do it so “skillfully”, and their injection immediately attracts attention with mild pain.
For bed bug bites (and to some extent fleas) tick bites They differ in that they are not collected in “paths” of 2-3 wounds. Each bug bites several times in one attack, moving 1-2 centimeters between bites, and as a result, characteristic “chains” of reddened bumps remain on the human body. The tick bites only once, after which it falls away from the body, and therefore leaves only one trace of a skin puncture on the skin.
On a note
It is quite easy to distinguish a tick bite from the bite of a scolopendra, tarantula or small poisonous snake: these animals leave two points at once at the skin puncture sites. Scolopendras bite with two clearly visible jaws, spiders with two chelicerae, and snakes with two teeth. Consequently, there will be two clearly visible points at the sites of their bites. The tick pierces the skin with a saw-toothed hypostome in only one place.
By the shape of the wound itself, a tick bite can be distinguished from a leech bite. After sucking on a leech, due to its characteristic structure oral apparatus the wound looks like a small even cross. In a tick, it simply looks like a dot. After the leech falls off, the wound continues to bleed for a very long time, which does not happen after tick bites.
But it is impossible to judge whether a person is infected with the tick-borne encephalitis virus by the appearance of the bite - it does not appear outwardly.
The opposite situations happen very rarely - they can arise, for example, during a multi-day hunting or fishing trip, on hiking trips, that is, during a long stay in the wild without the opportunity to undress, wash and examine the body. Here the tick can suck blood from a person under clothing for several days, after which it detaches.
- Get caught on the victim’s clothing or fur;
- Get to a place convenient for blood sucking;
- Pierce the skin and attach to the wound;
- Suck blood;
- Detach and leave the host's body.
It is important to understand that there are almost never situations in which a tick bites, but does not have time to attach itself and crawls away.
Then, from 2-3 minutes to an hour, the tick moves around the host’s body and looks for well-supplied areas with thin skin. Then the bite occurs:
The photo below shows the proboscis (hypostome) of a tick:
And this is what a hypostome looks like under a scanning electron microscope:
Representatives different types ticks and individuals at different stages tend to choose for attachment different places on the body of the provider. On the human body, these are most often the armpit areas, and then, in descending order of frequency of attachment, the following areas follow:
- Breast;
- Stomach;
- Hands (including between fingers);
- Buttocks and perianal area;
- Legs;
- Neck and head (especially the area behind the ears).
The photo below shows a tick attached to a child’s ear:
It is noteworthy that in children, ticks are more often than in adults attached to the head (including in the hair, often behind the ear) and sometimes even on the face - on the cheeks, on the chin.
This is interesting
The photos below show female ticks engorged with blood:
Therefore, by the way, during one feeding each tick sucks out more blood and other liquids than it weighs at the time of detachment. Within a few days of feeding on the host, most of the food consumed has time to be digested and spent on development and growth, and undigested components are excreted in excrement. As a result, female ticks, weighing 7-10 mg before feeding, absorb about 5500-8500 mg of food during attachment, but weigh only 900-1400 mg after falling off.
This is interesting
Virtually no factors external environment are not able to force an unsatiated tick to detach from its host. The fact is that the very fact of getting on the host’s body and attaching to it is a vital necessity for each individual individual. Thus, one female lays several thousand eggs, and not all of them are fertilized and only a portion hatch into larvae.
Of several thousand larvae, only a few will be able to find the first host, and all the rest will die either from hunger or from predators. Likewise, of the several thousand larvae that have molted into the first instar nymph, only a few will be able to feed on the next host. As a result, for every adult tick that attaches itself to a person or animal, there are millions of its dead counterparts who did not manage to do so. Therefore, it is biologically conditioned that if a tick has attached itself, it will detach itself only after saturation, and it is impossible to force it to do this earlier. He would rather die than miss the chance to be satiated to the end.
It is for this reason that methods of removing attached ticks using hot matches, oil or repellents are ineffective. Even if burned or suffocated by a drop of oil, the tick will not let go of its victim.
It is interesting that if in nymphs of all ages, larvae and adult males, nutrition promotes general development organism, then in adult females, when feeding, the reproductive system first fully matures, and after fertilization, degradation begins digestive system with parallel development large quantity eggs In fact, after complete saturation and development, the adult female is a living egg sac, practically incapable of further life. She can still move a short distance to find shelter on the ground, but here, after laying eggs, all that remains of her is actually the mouthparts and the shell of the idiosome.
Adult males also do not live long after feeding, but their lives are a little more eventful. They actively search for females, fertilize them, and can feed them several times. However, engorged adult males no longer survive the change of seasons and do not live to see the next year.
Possible consequences of an Ixodid tick attack
Tick bites can lead to consequences that vary both in their external manifestations and in the danger to the health and life of the victim.
If we talk about bites in humans, these consequences include:
- A normal temporary reaction to a bite is redness and slight itching after the tick detaches;
- Inflammation and suppuration of the wound, in which there was an accidental infection or the head of the tick remained after its removal;
- An allergic reaction, usually limited to swelling, spreading redness over the skin and a rash around the bite site. Anaphylaxis in response to bites and ticks has not been documented;
- Infection with dangerous tick-borne infections. In Russia and neighboring countries, such infections include the tick-borne encephalitis virus and Lyme disease (borreliosis); in other countries, ticks can carry the pathogens of spotted fever and Q fever.
Of the two most common tick-borne infections in Eurasia, encephalitis is considered much more dangerous than borreliosis, since there is no specific effective treatment against TBE. Borreliosis, with timely diagnosis, can be treated quickly and effectively with available antibiotics.
Moreover, even in the most dangerous areas for tick-borne encephalitis, the frequency of infection with this disease does not exceed 0.24% of the total number of bites. That is, out of 10,000 tick bites, only 24 of those bitten develop tick-borne encephalitis.
Is it possible to understand from the appearance of the bite that an infection has occurred?
It is impossible to determine by the appearance of the tick, just as it is impossible to determine from the bite itself whether transmission of the pathogen has occurred. Directly after a bite and immediately after it, tick-borne infections do not manifest themselves in any way, therefore, they do not affect the appearance of the wound in any way.
On a note
As noted above, after a few days annular migratory erythema may appear, which is a sign of infection with borreliosis.
The first symptoms of encephalitis and borreliosis develop on average after 2-3 weeks, but sometimes it can be different. Thus, borreliosis sometimes manifests itself within 4-5 days after the bite, and in other cases the development of infection is delayed for several weeks. Therefore, a person who has been bitten needs to remember about the bite itself, so that when the first signs of illness appear, immediately consult a doctor.
A few more photos
A tick has attached itself to a child's ear:
And this photo shows signs of an allergy to a tick bite:
Removing a tick with a thread:
What to do next
In most cases, treating a bite with antiseptics is sufficient for first aid to the bitten person. If the bite occurred in a region epidemiologically dangerous for tick-borne encephalitis, it is highly advisable to save the tick for analysis, as this will help to find out whether there is a risk of infection after the incident.
To do this you need:
On a note
As for pets, the incubation period for piroplasmosis is on average 1-2 weeks, and if at this time the pet shows signs of illness, it should be immediately taken to the veterinarian.
There is no need to take any medications on your own or start any treatment after a tick bite. None of the tick-borne infections can be treated at home. Only doctors prescribe and carry out such treatment.
The bite of a tick, a small creature that cannot fly and lives only in grass or low bush, can cause a person a lot of health problems, including disability or death. We will look further into what the symptoms of a tick bite in a person and the consequences of this incident may be.
Ticks are blood-sucking organisms that belong to the arachnid family. This is the largest group in this class. Quite small arthropods, measuring a couple of millimeters in size; a large individual reaches only half a centimeter. Despite this, they can cause irreparable harm to a person. The bite of this creature is completely unnoticeable and painless. Symptoms of an encephalitis tick bite in humans appear later.
Statistics show that in the vast majority of cases arachnids are not infected infectious diseases and their bite, provided that the tick is noticed on the skin in time and removed correctly, will not have any unpleasant consequences, except for external visible manifestations at the site of suction.
Local symptoms of an uninfected tick bite in a person (photo below) are not dangerous in any way and appear as:
Some other general signs of an uninfected tick bite in a person may be observed, the most common of which are the following symptoms:
Let's look at what symptoms a person exhibits after being bitten by an infected tick. It is worth noting that an infected arachnid individual is no different in appearance from a non-ill one. The bite site on a person’s skin may not have any special signs; sometimes, if the tick is infected with Lyme disease (borraliosis), they may:
Other options for the development of events are also possible. A tick removed independently can be placed in a sealed container and delivered to the laboratory to determine the carriage of infections.
Or, if this is not possible, you can donate blood yourself, without waiting for a possible infection to gain momentum. Diseases carried by ticks are diagnosed in the laboratory at the earliest stages.
The most common disease carried by ticks is spring-summer tick-borne meningoencephalitis. Symptoms of an encephalitis tick bite in humans appear after an incubation period (1-2 weeks). This dangerous viral disease leads to extremely serious neurological consequences and death.
It is worth noting that out of a hundred ticks, only 6 individuals are carriers of the virus. About 2-6% of those who are bitten can get sick from them.
Symptoms after an encephalitis tick bite in a person correspond to the phases of the disease: the first stage, remission and the second stage.
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Phases |
Manifestations |
| First | The duration of manifestations is usually 2-4 days. The following symptoms may appear:
Laboratory blood tests may reveal leukopenia and/or thrombocytopenia. |
| Remission | This period lasts 8 days. It is characterized by complete and rather abrupt disappearance of symptoms. |
| Second | Develops in 20-30% of infected people. It can go in two directions, or it is possible that both sets of symptoms may occur.
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It is possible to detect the virus through a blood test at the first stage, but practice shows that the disease is diagnosed only in the second phase of its course. Usually carries out differential diagnosis of tick-borne encephalitis with such ailments as:
The only one effective way The therapy here is the early administration of immunoglobulin injections. In other cases, the developing disease leads to death (within a week after the development of the neurological clinical picture of the disease). The Far Eastern subtype of tick-borne encephalitis especially often develops this way.
Prevention of encephalitis is very effective. This is a vaccination with a special drug according to certain schemes for different cases(local residents of endemic areas, visiting tourists, etc.).
Nonspecific prevention methods must be followed to avoid disastrous consequences:
Lyme disease carries special kind arachnids – ixodid ticks. They live mainly in the forests of the northern hemisphere. Although, Borrelia is carried by migrating birds over long distances. An infected tick has Borrelia in its body for life and passes it on to its offspring.
These microorganisms are found in the stomach of arachnids and extremely rarely in saliva, so infection does not always occur with a bite. But the consequences of infection are quite dangerous, especially if proper treatment is not started on time.
Borraliosis, an infection that attacks almost all tissues and organs human body and can present with a variety of different symptoms. People who have been attacked by arachnids often wonder: how long after a tick bite do symptoms appear in a person? Infectious disease experts say that the disease can manifest itself either a few days after infection or a month later. The incubation period depends on the resistance of the infected organism and its immunity.
Symptoms of Borreliosis after a tick bite in a person are divided according to the stages of the disease. There are three such stages of the group of clinical manifestations:
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Stages |
Manifestations |
| I. | The first stage can occur either with a very violent manifestation of symptoms or with a smooth course. Most often noted:
A rash on the face and conjunctivitis may appear (not often). If the infection reaches the meninges, the following symptoms may appear:
In some cases, a clinical picture of so-called “anicteric” hepatitis may occur:
Some infected people may only show skin signs of the disease, or there may be no symptoms at all. Sometimes the development of the disease stops at this stage, especially after competent and timely treatment. |
| II. | The disease does not always enter this stage; if this happens, it occurs after a couple of months. It is characterized by neurological manifestations in the form of the development of a clinical picture of the following diseases:
There are throbbing headaches, extremely high fatigue and tiredness. The innervation of the face is disrupted. Some cardiac abnormalities may occur:
Cases of benign lymphocytoma of the facial skin have been reported. |
| III. | This period can occur in only 10% of patients no earlier than six months or 2 years from the onset of infection.
This can result in extremely seriousconsequences of a tick bite in humans, symptoms may be as follows:
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| Chronic stage | If left untreated, the disease becomes chronic. This period is characterized by alternating remissions and relapses. May lead to bone destruction (osteoporosis), chronic cutaneous lymphocytoma, skin atrophy. |
This pathology is dangerous because symptoms may not appear for a long time (up to six months). Meanwhile, the virus progresses in the human body, manifesting itself only when the disease has progressed far.
But the prognosis for this disease is not always difficult. Quite often the disease subsides at the first stage of development. Here a lot depends on the strength of the immune system. If the disease has progressed to the second and then to the third stage, not everything is so rosy. Long-term observation and treatment in a hospital setting are required.
Preventative measures are only barrier protection and a thorough examination after walks. It is important to detect the bloodsucker in time and remove it from the skin correctly. According to statistics, among those officially registered as bitten, the percentage of those infected with Lyme disease does not exceed 1.75%.
Consequences of the bite. How to minimize them?
The clinical picture in the first stages of infection with any of these infections will be similar. It is important that if alarming symptoms appear, consult a doctor. Manifestations begin after a few days. If the discovered bloodsucker is taken to the laboratory for analysis after removal, then its analysis will help determine a possible infection and take action immediately.
Most often, the bite passes without systemic consequences, since the vast majority of ticks are sterile, but in case of infection, the following consequences may occur:
The effects of infection can be aggravated by addiction to alcohol, pregnancy, weak immunity, fatigue and stress.
Every year, as soon as the spring sun comes out, we gather a large group and go to nature to enjoy a delicious barbecue. And immediately insects wake up and are impatiently waiting for us there. We are accustomed to mosquito bites, especially if we take mosquito spray with us, but tick bites can lead to serious consequences.
Tick season usually begins in early April, but last years Victims receive their first bites in March. It lasts until September-October, so even in summer we must not forget about these little pests. Why are ticks so dangerous, what diseases do they carry? Read on to learn about the symptoms a person may experience after a tick bite.
IN Experts in Europe know 15 diseases, and 7 of they are dangerous for people. These are Lyme disease (borreliosis), tick-borne encephalitis, ehrlichiosis, tick-borne relapsing fever, tularemia, babesiosis, spotted fever. The first 4 are the most common. These diseases appear after a tick bite, but main danger in that some of they are asymptomatic.
Doctors never tire of reminding you that after a tick bite you should immediately go to the hospital and take the tick for examination. Most people neglect this rule - they remove the tick and immediately forget about it. This cannot be done, and so that you do not become one of them, we will tell you what diseases these insects carry and what are the first symptoms of infection.
Borreliosis
In 1975, in Lyme, Connecticut, many cases of rheumatoid arthritis were reported in children and adults after exposure to ticks. After conducting research, scientists were able to establish the cause of the disease - bacteria of the genus Borrelia.
The first signs of borreliosis appear after 7-14 days after a tick bite.Main symptoms:
Bacteria affect literally all systems - nervous, circulatory, digestive, musculoskeletal. The disease penetrates all organs and tissues, and if at first the symptoms resemble ordinary poisoning, then by the 4th week they will develop into speech and memory impairment, facial paralysis, arrhythmia and dizziness.
Please note that there is no vaccine to prevent borreliosis. The best prevention is to protect yourself from being bitten.
Ehrlichiosis
Bacteria of the genus Ehrlichia enter the human blood through tick saliva. The first signs appear after 7-20 days after the bite.The disease manifests itself in the following symptoms:
Ehrlichiosis can be asymptomatic, especially in adults.
Babesiosis
The Babesiidae bacteria that cause this disease attack red blood cells. Symptoms:
The disease may be asymptomatic, in which case it can only be detected after a blood test. It is also known how long after contact with a tick signs may appear: 7-15 days.
Tick-borne relapsing fever
A very serious disease, the symptoms of which appear almost instantly:
Pay attention to what the bite looks like: it turns into a small papule, and later a rash appears all over the body.
Spotted fever
This disease manifests itself quite quickly - after 1-2 days after the bite infected tick. From the symptoms:
After a few more days, you can notice hemorrhages on the mucous membrane, rashes appear on the skin, giving way to reddish nodules.
Tularemia
This is another dangerous disease that is transmitted through a tick bite. Among the first symptoms that can be detected at home:
Treatment of the above diseases should begin immediately. Diseases can develop into a chronic form and even lead to death or disability. Moreover, after one bite you can catch several diseases from a tick at once!
When returning from the street, be sure to inspect your entire body for bites. Most often, ticks can be found on the head or leg - these are the areas of the skin that remain less protected.
As you can see, we talked about all the diseases, but we kept silent about one. Tick-borne encephalitis is a very serious disease and, unfortunately, the most common, so we will tell you more about it.
To begin with, we note that the word “encephalitic” does not refer to the tick belonging to a specific species: it means that it is infected with the encephalitis virus. What kind of disease is this?
Viral encephalitis is an acute inflammation of the brain, accompanied by damage to the spinal cord and peripheral nerves. If treatment is not started in time, the disease begins to progress: a person’s speech and memory fail, intellectual abilities decrease, personality degradation/change occurs, paralysis and death are possible.
It is impossible to determine by appearance whether an insect is infected or not, and that is why doctors ask you to bring the ticks from which you have suffered for analysis in order to eliminate the risk of disease.
Remember: after a tick bite, you need to see a doctor immediately. There are risks of contracting encephalitis if you feel unwell in the first few days, namely:
With viral encephalitis, symptoms may subside within a few days, so it can easily be confused with a common cold. But after some time they repeat, and there can be about 10 such waves.
Symptoms may appear after 2 days or after 3 weeks. Sometimes the disease manifests itself asymptomatically, and this makes encephalitis even more dangerous, because the more the disease progresses, the more difficult it is to cure it.
Summarizing all of the above, we can draw a specific conclusion: after a tick bite, you should immediately consult a doctor to eliminate the risk of disease. When you remove a tick, try to do it as carefully as possible so that it remains alive. Then put it in a small jar and run to the laboratory! There you will need to donate blood.
But it's best to avoid tick bites. When going outdoors, wear closed shoes and long sleeves. Cover your neck, armpits, head, and tuck your pants into your socks. Girls must braid their hair and hide it under a hat or headscarf. Don't forget about special means from insects.
Remember that ticks mostly live in bushes and dead wood, so don’t climb there unless necessary. As soon as you get home, inspect all your things and shake them thoroughly. This is the only way to protect yourself from the dangerous diseases these insects carry!
