Just pulled a tick from DS's back...

[minko]

Never seen one before but noticed it in the bath. I just pulled it off with my fingers and it has left a small red spot.

I gave it a good wash but haven't done anything else.

Is there anything else I should do?? He's asleep in bed now... He's 4 by the way.

[nowwearefour]

Keep the tick. look out for a target type rash. check the area when you go to bed. you might well want to get the tick analysed to check for lymes disease. it is horrible. where were you when he got it? it can be really nasty. i have an email from a friend whose son has got lymes disease. if you would like to see it i will email it to you. it offers advice to another friend of mine whose dd found a tick. she did nothing in the end. her choice but at least she ahd the information.

[AnnoyingOrange]

some useful info here www.bada-uk.org/defence/removal/removaltweezers.php

[minko]

DH squashed the tick unfortunatley and put it down the toilet.

Am terrified now! He picked it up in the garden today. It wasn't there at bath time last night...

[nowwearefour]

another link here

[Meow75]

If he gets cold/flu symptoms, take him to your doc for antibiotics otherwise, get a tick hook from the local veterinary surgeon.

[nowwearefour]

the email said this:

I think the rash normally appears within a couple of weeks. However, it only occurs within about 50% of infections, so no rash doesn?t mean you don?t have lyme disease unfortunately. The other things to look out for are swollen glands and tiredness. If her daughter seems offside in any way, I would take that as a signal. The best way to check is to keep the tick and get it tested, but I guess your friend hasn?t done that (as she wouldn?t know to do it). It also depends how long the tick was on there for, I think it takes a while to pass the infection on (but again, I guess your friend doesn?t know that either ? unless she found it within a few hours of being in the forest for the first time. It?s worth checking the stats here as I know that the received wisdom is changing on how quickly ticks can pass the disease on.

She could get a test done for lyme, although I don?t know how long the results take to come back and I don?t think they?re 100% accurate. To be super cautious, she should get a full panel test for the various co-infections that ticks carry ? e.g. bartonella (which A had) plus other nastier things ? rocky mountain fever etc. However, I don?t know if that is necessary in the UK as I don?t know what the co-infection rate is (here the co-infections are often more prevalent than lyme itself).

If she wanted to be super cautious, I would suggest a three-week course of combination antibiotics. I can?t remember exactly what those antibios are ? I think amoxicillin is one, possibly doxycycline, but I can check with dw if your friend is concerned. It?s a tough call though, because you don?t want to pump your kid full of antibiotics if unnecessary ? and indeed, her gp may be unwilling to even prescribe it - so it?s about balancing out the risks. Personally, I would very much err on the side of over-treating, but it?s a very tough call. As I said, she should really keep a close eye for anything unusual with her child.

[southeastastra]

[oricella]

I do understand that it only takes one bite and that when you're the 1 out of a hundred thousand statistics are quite meaningless (I've some experience on that with DD contracting meningitis), but please don't get too anxious about this.. it's good to be aware, but there's really no reason to be terrified.

The chances of catching Lyme's disease from one tick bite are small .. just the other week I picked off four in a day from my 3 year old, and DH has had too many to count in decades of tramping through the highlands and never caught Lyme's either.

You did the right thing, removed the tick and you now know that if your son develops flu like symptoms you'll have him checked over and mention the tick to the doctor. Chances are that won't be needed at all..

[ItsAllGoingToBeFine]

this site has a lot of useful and factual info...

[minko]

Many thanks for all your advice and for putting things in perspective Oricella.

I'll keep a close eye on him over the next few weeks...

[traceybath]

DS2 had one and I took him to the Dr to get it removed - went to surgery straight away as within surgery hours.

GP very matter of fact as we're not in a Lymes Disease area apparently.

But yes keep an eye on him - horrid things aren't they.

[nowwearefour]

yes sorry i was prob far too scary. my friend was the unlucky one and has consequently put the ebie gebies into me. thank goodness for others with a more norma perspective

[beammeupscotty]

Do check under the hairline - apparently they hide there and get missed, expecially in children. The sooner the tick is removed the less likely lymes disease. Do you have deer or sheep in your garden?www.newforest.gov.uk/media/adobe/ACFDD1D.pdf

[lovingthesun]

my DD was also bitten by a tick. I took it out with tweezers & forgotten about it, then about 3 weeks later she became very unwell. The hospital took some blood & sent it off & it's just come back negative.

Go to the drs for peace of mind. It's unlikely anything will be wrong, but you never know & much easier to deal with if addressed early.

[oricella]

Well, after rationally putting things in perspective on here, we're now starting DD1 off on 3 weeks of antibiotics as she tested positive for Lyme's disease

She's not really ill, but I felt she was less energetic and when I mentioned that to the GP he felt she should be tested just in case.

So here we are - it could be a false positive, or we could be lucky and just caught it in the right early stages and no harm done

One thing's for sure - no more rolling in the long highland grass for DDs!!

[looseleaf]

oricella i started a different thread on Lyme disease as our dd has it (it was clear enough from her rash but she also tested positive). Ours was also from the Highlands. Please can i ask more as doctors here in London don't have the same experience of it- eg how long after the bite did you start treatment, which antibiotic and whether double strength? Dd is nearly 4, bitten a month before started treatment and on double strength dose of amoxicillin for 2 weeks and i would love reassurance if this is enough!