Lyme disease

What are tick-born diseases?

Tick-borne diseases are infections that ticks can spread to humans and animals.

Some but not all ticks can bite and infect people or animals. Both children and adults can get tick bites while spending time outdoors, especially in woods, bushes or high grass.

Two common infections spread by ticks are Lyme Disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.

What is Lyme Disease?

Lyme Disease is the most common tick-borne disease in the United States and is especially common in the northeast, upper Midwestern states, and the Pacific Northwest. It is caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi, which can be carried by deer ticks or western black-legged ticks.

About 15,000 cases of Lyme Disease are reported in the U.S. every year. This disease can cause inflammation in the skin, joints, heart muscle and central nervous system, as well as other organs. It goes through different stages and symptoms can appear several weeks or months after an infected tick has bitten a person.

Treatment / What you should do

A tick that has bitten a person and is attached itself to the skin should be removed right away.

If the tick is removed within 24 hours, it probably will not cause an infection. Therefore, it is always important to do "tick checks" each day on yourself and especially your children.

Use fine-tipped tweezers to grab and then remove the tick with a steady pull.

When you have removed the tick, it can be a good idea to apply a little antibacterial ointment to the site of the bite, especially if the skin around it looks red and irritated.

Some people will have more symptoms after the tick bite. Consult your doctor if a ring-shaped rash appears at the site of the bite or elsewhere on the skin. You should also contact your doctor if your child has muscle and joint pain, headache or a mild fever.

See your doctor immediately if your child seems very sick especially if there is a high fever, stiff neck or unusual behavior, such as being very tired or lethargic. The doctor may test a blood sample and possibly a spinal fluid sample for antibodies, which fight the Borrelia bacterium.

If your child has Lyme disease, he will be treated with antibiotics.