Effingham, IL -(Effingham Radio)- Tips for prevention, tick removal and bite treatment
Lyme disease is the most common disease spread by the bite from an insect, with 30,000 cases reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) each year. This number, however, does not reflect every case of Lyme Disease that is diagnosed annually.
Blacklegged ticks are the most common carrier of Lyme disease; these include deer ticks, wood ticks and lone star ticks, all of which are most active in the Midwest from May to September.
Dr. Ryan Jennings, chief medical officer at HSHS St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital, says finding the tiny insects on people and pets early is important.
“If a tick bite leads to someone getting Lyme disease, untreated Lyme disease can produce many different symptoms including fever, rash, arthritis and facial paralysis in humans,” he said. “Lyme disease in your pets can cause a loss of appetite, reduced energy, joint pain and even lead to kidney failure which can be fatal.”
To prevent a tick bite, the CDC recommends the following:
- Avoid wooded and brushy areas with high grass
- Use Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-registered insect repellents containing DEET
- Wear long sleeves, long pants and long socks when outdoors for any length of time
- Check your clothing, body and hair carefully after coming indoors
- Check your pets for ticks daily, especially around their ears, eyelids, tail and toes
To remove a tick:
- Grasp tick with a narrow-bladed tweezers as close as possible to the skin
- Pull upward and out with a firm and steady tension
- Do not use petroleum jelly, a hot match, nail polish or other products
- Don’t squeeze, crush or puncture the tick’s body, which may contain infectious fluids
- Do not twist the tick, which can cause the mouthparts to break off and stay in the skin
- Clean the bite site with rubbing alcohol after removal and monitor that area of your skin
Early signs and symptoms of Lyme disease:
- Three to 30 days after tick bite:
- Fever and/or chills
- Headache
- Fatigue
- Muscle aches
- Bullseye rash at the site of the bite (occurs in approximately 70 percent of infected persons – not everyone)
- Days to months after tick bite:
- Severe headaches and neck stiffness
- Loss of muscle tone or droopiness in face
- Severe joint pain, particularly in the knees
- Heart palpitations
- Numbness, tingling or shooting pains in the hands or feet
Dr. Jennings says if symptoms persist, check with your primary care provider for mild symptoms, but for more severe symptoms, you should seek emergency care. The emergency department at HSHS St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital, 503 N. Maple St. in Effingham, is open 24/7.
To learn more about tick bite prevention, visit the Illinois Department of Health Services website. You can also download The Tick App to your Apple or Android device to report ticks, find prevention tips and help researchers better understand ticks and the diseases they carry. The free app was developed by the Midwest Center of Excellence Vector-Borne Disease at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
About Hospital Sisters Health System
Hospital Sisters Health System’s (HSHS) mission is to reveal and embody Christ’s healing love for all people through our high-quality Franciscan health care ministry. HSHS provides state-of-the-art health care to our patients and is dedicated to serving all people, especially the most vulnerable, at each of our physician practices and 15 local hospitals in two states – Illinois (Breese, Decatur, Effingham, Greenville, Highland, Litchfield, O’Fallon, Shelbyville and Springfield) and Wisconsin (Chippewa Falls, Eau Claire, Oconto Falls, Sheboygan and two in Green Bay). HSHS is sponsored by Hospital Sisters Ministries, and Hospital Sisters of St. Francis is the founding institute. For more information about HSHS, visit www.hshs.org. For more information about Hospital Sisters of St. Francis, visit www.hospitalsisters.org.
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