Tick Bites

Overview

Ticks are small spiderlike animals (arachnids). They bite to fasten themselves onto the skin and feed on blood. Ticks live in the fur and feathers of many birds and animals. Tick bites occur most often during early spring to late summer and in areas where there are many wild animals and birds.

Most ticks don't carry diseases, and most tick bites don't cause serious health problems. But it's important to remove a tick as soon as you find it. Removing the tick's body helps you avoid diseases that the tick may pass on during feeding. Removing the tick's head helps prevent an infection in the skin where it bit you.

In most cases, removing the tick, washing the site of the bite, and watching for signs of illness are all that's needed.

Some people may have an allergic reaction to a tick bite. This reaction may be mild, with a few annoying symptoms. In rare cases, a severe allergic reaction (anaphylaxis) may occur.

Many of the diseases ticks carry cause flu-like symptoms, such as fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, and muscle aches. Symptoms may start from 1 day to 3 weeks after the tick bite. Sometimes a rash or sore appears along with the flu-like symptoms. Ticks are found worldwide. They can carry many diseases, including common ones such as:

Tick paralysis is a rare problem that may occur after a tick bite. It may cause tingling and numbness in hands or feet, double vision, and trouble swallowing. In some parts of the world, tick bites may cause other tick-borne diseases, such as South African tick-bite fever.

Self-Care

Most ticks don't carry diseases, and most tick bites don't cause serious health problems. The sooner ticks are removed, the less likely they are to spread disease.

Some ticks are so small that it's hard to see them. This makes it hard to tell if you have removed the tick's head. If you don't see any obvious parts of the tick's head in the bite site, assume that you have removed the entire tick. But watch for signs of a skin infection.

Here are some things you can do to care for a tick bite.

• Remove the tick.

  Use fine-tipped tweezers to remove a tick. If you don't have tweezers, put on gloves or cover your hands with tissue paper, and then use your fingers. Don't handle the tick with bare hands.

  After you remove the tick, wash your hands really well with soap and water.

  Don't try to burn the tick off. And don't try to smother an attached tick with petroleum jelly, nail polish, gasoline, or rubbing alcohol. This may increase your risk of infection.

• Try cold, then heat.
  • Use an ice pack on your bite for 15 to 20 minutes once an hour for the first 6 hours. When you aren't using ice, keep a cool, wet cloth on the bite for up to 6 hours.
  • After the first 6 hours, if you don't have swelling, try putting a warm washcloth on the bite for comfort.
• Wash the area of the tick bite with a lot of warm, clean water.
• Apply a bandage, if needed.

  If you need to cover the area, you can apply a thin layer of petroleum jelly, such as Vaseline, lightly to the wound. It will keep the bite from sticking to the bandage.

• Try a nonprescription medicine to relieve itching, redness, and swelling.
  • An antihistamine medicine may help. Be safe with medicines. Read and follow all instructions on the label. Don't give antihistamines to your child unless you've checked with the doctor first.
  • A spray of local anesthetic containing benzocaine, such as Solarcaine, may help relieve pain. If your skin reacts to the spray, stop using it.
  • Calamine lotion applied to the skin may help relieve itching.
• Check your skin for more ticks, and check your clothing, gear, and pets.

  Remove any ticks you find. Then put your clothing in a clothes dryer on high heat for about 4 minutes to kill any ticks that might remain.

When to call for help during self-care

Call a doctor if any of the following occur during self-care at home:

• New or worse signs of an infection, such as redness, warmth, swelling, or pus.
• Flu-like symptoms, such as a fever, muscle aches, or chills.
• Symptoms occur more often or are more severe.

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