Lyme Disease
This page is about avoiding and treating Lyme Disease.
Understanding Lyme Disease
Lyme Disease is an illness which may result from the bite of a tick picked up when outside in the countryside and even, perhaps, in our own back gardens. A few, very unlucky, people develop a severe illness, affecting the central nervous system, whilst others exhibit no symptoms at all. The risk of contracting the illness is low but people need to be aware and take simple precautions.
The possibility of picking up Lyme Disease should not spoil our enjoyment of the countryside but an understanding of the disease and how to avoid it is generally sensible.
Lyme Disease, also known as Lyme borreliosis, is an illness caused by Borrelia burgdorferi, a spirochaete (a spiral-shaped bacteria). The bacteria can be transferred into a human when an infected tick bites and feeds off our blood. The infection can be transferred from both the immature or adult tick. Ticks are active between February and October with a peak in May and June. Not all types of ticks carry the disease and not all people bitten will develop the disease but it is best to avoid being bitten in the first place.
Lyme Disease is not transmitted directly from person to person or from the bites of other types of insects or animals.
When ticks bite they hang on, burying their mouthparts into the skin. Any tick should be removed carefully and as soon as possible (see guidance below).
Early treatment with antibiotics is highly effective
Early treatment of any bite with antibiotics is highly effective and should prevent the more serious complications developing.
Some people are more susceptible to developing Lyme Disease depending on their general health and other factors. After being bitten it usually takes from between a few days to several weeks for symptoms to develop. The initial sign is a gradually spreading pink rash around the site of the bite which can last for weeks if untreated. Other early symptoms include mild headaches, aching muscles and joints, and tiredness.
Those people most severely affected can suffer weakness of the facial nerves; pain; tingling or loss of sensation in the arms, legs and body trunk; and joint pains.
Animals
Some animals can also be affected by Lyme Disease, especially dogs, and will also need to be checked for ticks. Tick collars are available.
How to avoid developing Lyme Disease
Avoid being bitten by a tick by:
- keeping skin covered
- wearing lighter coloured clothes that will make it easier to see any ticks
- preferably wearing trousers
- wearing shoes or boots and avoiding sandals
- tucking trouser bottoms into socks
- wearing a long sleeved shirt and fastening the cuffs
- considering using an insect repellent on exposed skin
- checking your clothing, picking or brushing off before going indoors
- checking your skin thoroughly in know tick-infested areas paying particular attention to the armpits, groin and scalp or where skin folds
- paying particular attention to children checking them for embedded ticks especially the neck, head and scalp areas
- check the dog for ticks and wear gloves when removing.
Do remember that ticks are just another pest and life is full of potential dangers. The risk of being bitten should not spoil or prevent our enjoyment of the great outdoors. The advice above is just sensible advice to reduce the risk but it is important to be aware, to check for ticks especially if visiting an endemic area and to take rapid action if a tick is discovered.
Action to take when a tick is found
Don't panic but action is needed and as soon as possible:
- early removal is vital (the earlier the better because even if it is an infected tick it is very unlikely to transmit the Lyme Disease spirochaete within the first few hours of starting its meal)
- try to remove the tick but do not rush. Use fingernails or, even better, a pair of fine toothed tweezers or a specialist tick extractor device (sold in vets and pet shops) and grip low down between the skin and tick’s swollen abdomen
- avoid squeezing the tick’s abdomen which could result in stomach contents being squeezed into the bite
- pull firmly without twisting the tick, or squeezing
- pull slowly upwards and out of the skin
- sometimes tick mouth parts can break off and stay in the skin risking other skin infections
- apply a skin antiseptic once the tick has been removed
- be aware of your body and check for any rash.
Do not:
- apply heat to the tick, such as a burning match
- apply a chemical to the tick, such as upending a small bottle of nail polish remover over the tick, before extraction.
Seek medical advice if you develop any redness
If in doubt seek the advice of your GP and do mention that a tick has bitten you.
As at March 2008 the Health Protection Agency (HPA) comment that taking antibiotics following a tick bite is not routinely recommended. You should definitely seek medical advice if you develop any redness or the rash is spreading. Early treatment with antibiotics is then important.
Travelling in Europe
See the EUCALB (European Union Concerted Action on Lyme Borreliosis) website
More information
- Lyme Disease Association charity website
- Lyme borreliosis/Lyme disease (Health Protection Agency website).
Contact
- email: food.safety@reigate-banstead.gov.uk
- telephone: 01737 276417.
Last updated : 15/05/2012
