General Chat

is there anyone out there who has been bitten by a tick recently. I have a relative who is now paralysed down one side of her face.

Yes, Lyme disease (Borreliose) is rife over here.

My son had extensive treatment this summer, he's fine thank now, goodness.

A friend of ours is actually crippled from it, not only are her legs badly affected, but also her heart.

Janet like Julia said it could be limes ......

Has this person seen a doctor ?

yes, she has been seen by a doctor, but at present only been given strong painkillers

is it true that you have to make sure the head of the tick is removed - or is that just a 'tall story'

The head is the bit that sucks the blood.Smother tick in vaseline and leave for up to 24 hours and it will slide out.
True.
Yes possible Lymes Disease.Long term anti biotics.

Your friend must getback to the Dr I think!

in the absence of any vaseline....margarine works just as well, covers the breathing holes of the tick and it lets go.

Lymes is not that easy to diagnose apparantly

Go back to the doctor and ask to see some one who knows about lymes..........or go to casualty ....

Where did the tick bite ??

A blood test can be done to see if it is lymes

and it can take two years to three years for symptons to pass according to netdoctor.co

OMG thanks folks--I just thought ticks were brought in on the animals (mine are all frontlined) --stupid me !

My son goes camping ...and they have to check each others bodies daily !!!!!!! great !!

but they have found two in the last two years .....

Ticks should always be removed properly with special tweezers, DO NOT ever burn them with a fag butt, or put anything on them (vaseline, nail varnish, oil etc) While they die slowly, they happily carry on emptying bacteria into you.

There's is definately not a lot of awareness of how dangerous tick bites can be.

I've managed to remove ticks using alcohol. My daughter picked up one on her leg a year or so ago and my husband once got one after taking a school camp.
His was on his tummy from doing some daft game with the kids in long grass and bracken.

You can't yank the things off or you risk them breaking but soak some cotton wool in some whisky or similar spirit and hold it on them for several minutes and they can be easily taken off with tweezers. Alcohol is sterile too so seems to help.

Then you do need to keep an eye out for symptoms.

Anywhere in the countryside in the UK where there's long grass and especially ferns and brackens is likely to have them.

A few years ago the local school was going to have the children walking to a service at the local church across a field but they had to cancel the walk because a child picked up a tick on its way to school earlier in the week.

It's not sensible to wear shorts and sandals in long grass or woodland.

Sue

Trying to remove tick using techniques like suffocation with petroleum jelly, butter, etc. do not work.

Gasoline, kerosene and hot matches are not recommended either and may cause additional injuries. It is possible these techniques will irritate the tick and provoke it to discharge spirochetes into the skin.

Twist the tick out with tweezers, tick removers or small forceps by grasping the tick as close as possible to the skin. Then without jerking, pull it upward steadily. After removing the tick, disinfect the skin area by rubbing alcohol or Betadine. Don't handle the tick, spirochetes could enter the body through breaks in the skin. Dispose of it in alcohol or flush it down the drain.

Check the bite for at least two weeks to see if a rash forms. If it does, seek treatment from your GP promptly.

There are 2 main viruses that can be transmitted to humans by tick: Louping-Ill and Lyme Disease. If you suspect you may be infected by either, see your GP as soon as possible and ask for a blood test.

Louping-Ill causes flu like symptoms and Lyme Disease (which can lie dormant for many years) symptoms of which can include chills, fever, fatigue, joint and muscle pains, and loss of appetite - even mild muscular-skeletal disturbances. Lyme disease is hard to diagnose in the early stages.

Janet-thanks for this horrible thread x
Julia-thanks for advice x
Now I know what I did wrong when one attached itself to my earlobe -I should have eased it out gently but firmly ,without fainting!!..

Horrible creatures, aren't they?!!!!! We have so many of the little blighters here it's become routine to de-tick our cats and our dog every evening during spring and summer.

Last year I had one that had crawled up my trouser leg whilst gardening, it attached itself to a most embarassing part of my anatomy, I managed not to faint - just!

Three of the diseases that can be caught from a tick bite in Britain are, Lyme borreliosis, Babesiosis and Ehrlichiosis. Globally, the list of diseases is much longer.

Lyme disease or Lyme borreliosis [bore-EL-ee-OH-sis] is caused by bacteria called Borrelia. Early symptoms can develop within weeks. They may include tiredness, chills, fever, headache, muscle and/or joint pain, swollen lymph glands and blurred vision. A characteristic skin rash called erythema migrans may appear. It is generally a circular rash that may clear in the centre, resulting in a "Bull's eye" appearance. It can expand and move around the body.

If early symptoms are not recognised, serious complications can develop weeks, months, or even years later. Later stage symptoms include arthritis in the large joints, which can recur over many years. Nervous system problems are common, e.g. numbness, meningitis (with fever, stiff neck and severe headache), Bell’s palsy (paralysis of the facial muscles) and memory problems. Some people experience irregularities of the heart rhythm.

Lyme disease should be diagnosed by a physical examination and medical history. This clinical diagnosis may in some cases be supported by laboratory testing. Diagnosis based on tests alone is not reliable – a negative result does not mean that the disease is not present. Symptoms can mimic those of other diseases. Diagnosis is easiest when there is a skin rash but this occurs in under 50% of patients.

Babesiosis [bab-EE-see-OH-sis] is caused by the Babesia parasite, an organism similar to that causing malaria. This attacks the red blood cells and its existence can only be shown by laboratory identification of the parasite. Symptoms, if any, begin with tiredness, loss of appetite and a general ill feeling. In severe cases, as the infection progresses, fever, drenching sweats, muscle aches and headache can follow, leading to complications such as very low blood pressure, liver problems, severe haemolytic anaemia (a breakdown of red blood cells) and kidney failure. Other cases usually have a milder illness and often get better on their own. The symptoms can take from 1 to 12 months after the tick bite to appear and can last from several days to several months.

Ehrlichiosis [air-LICK-ee-OH-sis] is a bacterial attack upon the white blood cells. Symptoms usually appear 3 to 16 days after a tick bite. The most common symptoms are sudden high fever, tiredness, major muscle aches, severe headache, and, in some cases, a rash. Diagnosis is difficult, even in severe cases. Diagnostic tests are not widely available and the diagnosis of Ehrlichiosis is usually based on symptoms and a history of exposure to ticks. Severely ill patients can develop abnormally low numbers of white blood cells or platelets and kidney failure.

Julia-do you not frontline the cats & dog? Just a simple liquid on the back of their head which will kill all ticks and fleas ---cheaper online than at the local vet obviously,-but there is none for humans just yet!!!!

lying in the long grass looking up at the blue sky on a summers day no longer has the same appeal since I started this thread - but thanks to everyone who has responded