tick bite fever and Lymes disease

[mousie]

anyone know about this? we live near richmond park and my son has had three ticks in the last two weeks. Now I have just read a really alarming article about infected ticks and tick bite fever. am really worried.

[LIZS]

We live in an area which is high risk for Lyme's Disease ticks in Switzerland. I vaguely recall that JJ has had experience of this so you would probably get better information from her.

As I understand the first thing to do is get them out, completely, and to watch for swelling around it and fever, aches and pains. Not all ticks carry Lyme's Disease but there is a blood test to test for it should your child react. There are also different strains , both baterial and viral, so think you shoudl consult your dr to be on the safe side.

[LIZS]

Is this any help ?

[spacecadet]

just to ad to that advice, its quiterare to get lymes desease but as you have been advised just keep a close eye out. the doctors can perform a blood test, also when walking through long grass always wear shoes and socksas opposed to sandals, no socks etc, that way you minimise the risk of a tick bite, my dh got one once, very nasty, had to go to the docs to get the tick removed.

[Sari]

A good way of getting ticks out is smearing vaseline over them. They can't breathe so have to back out of their own accord without any risk of the head breaking off.

[spacecadet]

oohh, didnt know that one sari- eww, ticks...yuk, yuk.

[expatinscotland]

Yuk! I got Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever from a deer tick in Colorado once. Ick! I HATE ticks!

[spacecadet]

euurrgghh, that sounds horrendous expat!

[expatinscotland]

It's like having the flu. But not in flu season. And I got a nasty rash. That's how they first suspected it. I had to spend a few days in hospital. The tick bit the back of my neck.

[PrincessPeaHead]

my brother had one of the first cases of lymes disease in england (caught it in canada and brought it over here! in about 1984). He was very ill with viral meningitis and in hospital for about 5 weeks poor thing. Mousie, apparently you are very unlikely to get lymes disease if you remove a tick within 24 hrs of it attaching so the key is to be extremely vigilant. Check over his head every night as that is where you may miss them. ANd also long trousers tucked into socks and long sleeved shirts will help.

[mousie]

thank you all. i am being super vigilant now. a friend recommended tea tree oil for removal - anyone heard of that ?

[mrsjingles]

My brother got lymes disease from a tick. He started feeling bad quite a few weeks after, and unfortunatly didn't get it checked out straight away as he didn't connect it. He was getting blurred vision and headaches and aching body really badly when he then got it checked. By this time it had taken hold badly and he ended up in hospital for a while with a patch over one eye, huge circular marks all over his body, very weak and lots of problems. Luckily he's fully recovered now, although they thought there may well be some lasting damage. However, as said, not all ticks carry this, and it it quite rare, his girlfriend also had ticks on her when he did and she was fine, so he got the rogue tick!

[Prettybird]

I reiterate the vaseline over the ticks to force them to let go. I must have walked thorugh a nest of ticks at my Granny's in SOuth Africa years ago - but didn't get tick bite fever (although everyone was checking em to see that I didn't come down with anything!). It did take a wee while for them to "come off" though - I had to reapply the vaseline on each tick after a bath. I do remember that even when all the ticks were out, the bite makrs they left were very itchy.