Lyme Disease

[Elton]

I spotted this press release today. Lyme Disease is another that anglers need to be aware of. Story here:

http://www.sfgate.com/business/prweb/article/TV-Fishing-Host-Kathryn-Maroun-Releases-Video-4521442.php

[Vagabond]

In our travels, Norma and I have encountered plenty of ticks .

 

There are several nasty diseases borne by ticks, so treat all ticks as serious AND REMOVE THEM IMMEDIATELY WITH TWEEZERS. Get a good grip between tick head and you, and pull.

 

It does not matter if the proboscis is left behind, it will soon fester out.

 

DO NOT let medics, however highly qualified, prat about with Vaseline (to "protect" the skin) and kerosene, or any other substance designed to make the tick let go painlessly - while they are doing all this palaver, the tick may void its stomach contents into your blood stream.

 

The medico-legal reasoning seems to be that if the proboscis is left behind, the patient may sue, but if the (possibly lethal) stomach contents are injected into your blood stream, it is not the medics "fault" legally.

 

So get the damn thing off as soon as possible. Never mind what the medics say. In tick infested country, two showers a day and a "tick inspection" at each is my recommendation.

 

The "pull it off , soon as" remedy is simple, immediate, and safe - although painful. If you are scared of that and opt for the "official" method of tick removal, you are running a huge (and to my mind, unacceptable) risk.

 

This is one situation where you should NOT take medical advice - take immediate action instead.

[John S]

Tweezers could crush or snap off the mouth parts which could lead to a septic abscess and maybe even septicaemia (thin pointed tweezers are better though), but if you are going through tick-infested areas regularly, I would suggest a good tick removal tool - these are the ones I have; one pair in my tackle box, the other pair stays at home for use on the dog....

 

http://www.bada-uk.org/products/tickremover.php

 

or from Amazon....

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/OTom-Twister-People-Animal-Resealable/dp/B001BATLY4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1369332801&sr=8-1&keywords=tick+removers

[davedave]

^{Cant you put a fag out on them and things like that?}

[John Weddup]

I often see eastern Europeans in make shift bivvys with no groundsheets getting drunk laying on the bank amongst sheep and think to myself Lymes desease.

 

the things you see on the fens these days.

 

Oh and its not meant to be racist and I am not making it up and I do mean to go and warn them of the dangers but they generally arrive after dark and are normally gone just before daybreak.

 

I have tried to chat too the, spend the whole weekend crew, of which we have a few but even asking for licences at 11am on a Saturday when they are blind drunk is hard enough. Might have to start breeding ticks.

 

John

[John S]

^{Cant you put a fag out on them and things like that?}

 

That might make them vomit, which is not a good thing.

[Vagabond]

^{Cant you put a fag out on them and things like that?}

The main danger of many tropical ticks is that they may regurgitate their stomach contents if disturbed

 

....wouldn't you throw up with a lighted fag up yer arris ?

 

No, the best way is that the first thing the tick knows is a pair of tweezers seizing the proboscis base.

 

...and yes John, a pair of narrow-bladed tweezers is good, and you dig in in front of the mouth parts - (that bit hurts)

I will have a look at those extractors. Though I wonder if they are big enough for Queensland bush ticks (Queensland is like Texas - everything is bigger there !)

 

Some of the time the proboscis comes out whole, sometimes a bit breaks off. It festers out quite soon.

 

Septicaemia ? Always a possibility with any wound that gets infected, Bramble scratches, horsefly bites etc . A neighbour got his foot scratched by a kitten and ended up losing his leg.

[arbocop]

always check yourself for ticks which transfer from animals such as sheep deer and cows. They crawl onto you from the long grass and can get in all manner of crevices [yes even there] and although harmless in themselves, ticks can transfer Lyme’s disease which is very unpleasant and I can vouch for this first hand when I caught it myself [not from angling]. If you remove the ticks within 24 hours the chances of getting the disease reduced significantly. They can get in some very inaccessible places so I usually get my missus to give me a very close inspection.

 

Don’t follow the old cowboy trick and try to burn them off, use a proprietary tick remover which can be bought from pet shops and chemists. Alternatively twist them off with tweezers, but as has already been said be careful not to leave their jaws in you. I don't believe any major harm will come to you if you do leave them in, but surely it's better to remove them!

 

Mike

[Phone]

All,

 

It is better to remove ticks thumb and forefinger and leave the head risking topical complications if you're thinking of waiting until you can get to a chemists or pet shop.

 

Just pull them off NOW. Any tramua will cause them to puke!!

 

Just wondering - - - does the old "look for a red bullseye" still apply? Used to be, before we knew about lyme, a red bullseye was an indicator of tick fevor.

 

Phone

 

It is not a bad idea to review symptoms which can be quite mild and take a while to onset.

[arbocop]

It is better to remove ticks thumb and forefinger and leave the head risking topical complications if you're thinking of waiting until you can get to a chemists or pet shop.

 

This is what I do. I work in a deer park often and I'm always getting ticks on me. I get the Mrs to check me over, if I find any I twist them off with my nails. I used to do it with a tcik remover, but I've done it so many times now I am quite confident to do it this way.

 

If you get a 'bulls eye' - red ring around the bite area - then you need to seek medical attention urgently. This is a sign of infection.

 

Mike