Lyme disease info

patsat

The three reds that myself and a friend shot yesterday were covered in ticks. And thanks to what I have learned from this board I know that these can carry Lyme disease so we were very careful.

Unfortunately my friend discovered a tick had dug his head into him once he fully inspected himself. My question is do all ticks carry this disease or only some??

How can he get checked out or is it just a matter of waiting? And is there anything to put on the bite to stop this?

Hopefully more than one hunter wil benefit from this thread.

kildare.17hmr

I read up about this before and afaik if you get them quick, as in the first day of them being on you you are usually fine as it takes ages for them to get right in. there is a vaccanation you can get to prevent the disease and id say a trip to the gp if he is worried will get him some antibiotics

Cass

I remember watching a programme on Discovery about Deer ticks only a short while ago. If memory serves the following are symptoms for Lymes disease:

• Fatigue
• Headache
• "Bulls eye" type rash spreading from initial bite area
• Joint pain
• Flu like sytoms
• Heart palpatations/issues
• Weakened immune system

The first four are common and can be expected from the first few weeks. The last two are long term. As in if the disease goes unchecked you may experience these. Although most people will experience these symptoms there are some that may have only one or two or even none of them. I would go with Kildare.17hmr's advice and get down to your GP for a check up. If possible bring the tick you removed. Be cautious though as after a few weeks the redish rash will disappear on its own. At this point the disease has a foot hold and becomes harder to treat. Some people think they have fought the infection and are fine. They are not. When in doubt, check it out.

Also check the area the tick bit into. They latch on fairly hard and produce a "cement" like substance. They are also known to detach their heads from their bodies if removed incorrectly. They should be squeezed quite firmly as close to the skin as possible (maybe even grabbing a little skin) and slowly and firmly pulled out. Keep the pressure even and constant and if the tick is still holding keep it pulled outwards for a few minutes. This will weaken the bug and loosen the "cement".

DO NOT twist or screw out the tick as this may leave the head or "teeth" still in the skin and as this is the part of the body that carries the bacteria that causes the disease. Also avoid crushing the body as the fluids released may carry the bacteria and inflame the problem. Contrary to popular belief (and according to the programme) heat, vaseline, alcohol, etc are not effective in removing or helping to remove ticks. The programme recommended a pair of blunt tweezers or something similar and remove it as described above.

Well thats as much as i can remember. I watched it intently as it was quite unsettling when i got to thinking about how easy something can go wrong without you even knowing about it.

Moral of the above is get your mate to a GP to be sure and get himself checked out. I would air on the side of caution rather than take a chance thinking everything is ok.

Tackleberrywho

patsat wrote: »

The three reds that myself and a friend shot yesterday were covered in ticks. And thanks to what I have learned from this board I know that these can carry Lyme disease so we were very careful.

Unfortunately my friend discovered a tick had dug his head into him once he fully inspected himself. My question is do all ticks carry this disease or only some??

How can he get checked out or is it just a matter of waiting? And is there anything to put on the bite to stop this?

Hopefully more than one hunter wil benefit from this thread.

Like all things Pat, prevention is better than cure.
Go to your GP and get the jab.
Ring him first to see has he got it in stock (save paining €50 a visit x2)

The deer societies run courses on the prevention of said problem AFAIK.
Contact them
http://www.irishdeersociety.ie/index.php?option=com_contact&view=contact&id=2:liam-mcgarry&catid=12:committee-contacts&Itemid=3

johngalway

Directly ask your GP if s/he is familiar with the disease. Not all of them are, to be honest I would seek one out who was. My girlfriend got it this year and it's a very nasty dose indeed, and that's even when it's caught!

Tackleberrywho

johngalway wrote: »

Directly ask your GP if s/he is familiar with the disease. Not all of them are, to be honest I would seek one out who was. My girlfriend got it this year and it's a very nasty dose indeed, and that's even when it's caught!

I keep my hair short, gives them less place to hide.
I must get the vaccine.

Although, i always have a shower/exam after skinning and I keep my hair short.

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/lyme/Prevention/ld_Prevention_Avoid.htm

I think this is one of the best links.
Notice DEET keeps them away too as well as Mozziess!

patsat

Thanks for the info lads, I'm going heading to the doc myself in the morning to get the vaccine, it aint worth the risk!

Deerspotter

Having been diagnosed in another EU country very familiar with the disease, I was quickly and correctly treated. It still knocked the [EMAIL="cr@p"]cr@p[/EMAIL] out of me for 3 months.
My GP in Ireland said - he is sure he would have misdiagnosed my symptoms, as he had NO experience with the disease.
He now does - as he had to treat me, on my return from holiday.
Tick was from Co. Kerry.
Doctor was in Dublin.