Be Tick Aware

August 18, 2010 at 11:30 am · Filed under Hiking, Lyme Disease, Safety, Ticks

By Kelsey Grousbeck, Intern

As summer rolls along, friends and families continue to make their way to many of the Peninsula’s open spaces to hike, picnic and enjoy the outdoors. Unfortunately, the outdoors can enjoy us just as much. Summer is a peak feeding time for many species of ticks, which feed on large mammals such as deer, dogs and humans. Some ticks are harmless to humans besides a painful bite and a minor infection, but the Deer Tick (Ioxodes scapularis) and the Western Black Legged Tick (Ioxodes pacificus) can transmit Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacterium that causes Lyme Disease, to humans and pets.

Ioxodes scapularis (Deer Tick)

Lyme Disease

Lyme disease is a treatable condition, but it can cause great discomfort and serious complications if it goes undiagnosed. The symptoms of Lyme Disease vary between cases, but often include fatigue, headaches, general joint and muscle aches, muscle twitches, uncontrollable irritability and mood swings, and at least one rash on the body. The tell-tale “bulls-eye” rash often associated with Lyme Disease unfortunately only occurs in 30% of the cases, so any rash, especially one that disappears and reappears intermittently, should be looked at.

The bad news about ticks is that they feed in the nymph stage when they are about the size of a poppy seed, making them almost impossible to spot before they are on you. The good news is that they are very slow-moving and require about 24 hours of being in the host to successfully transmit the bacteria, so thoroughly checking pets and yourselves nightly can greatly reduce your risk of infection. There are many products for pets that prevent fleas, ticks and other insects from biting them, unfortunately many of these products fail to kill ticks, which often means your pets will carry ticks into your home where they can find their way onto you.

The number of cases of Lyme per 100,000 people from '93-'05.

If You are Bitten

Ticks are often found in moist, shaded environments as well as high grasses or overgrown forest areas. Once they are on their host, they try to migrate to warm, moist areas such as the head, neck or under the arms before they bite. Their bite has a numbing agent in it, so it is nearly impossible to feel when you are being bitten. If you find a tick with its head stuck in your skin, you should remove it immediately but correctly, since you do not want to press the body and inject the bacteria into your system. To properly remove a tick, firmly grasp the head as close to your skin as possible with a pair of tweezers (NOT your fingers) and carefully pull the tick out. After that, rinse the area and treat it with an antiseptic, then seek medical attention as soon as you can. If you are able, bring the tick with you so it can be tested for the bacteria or any other diseases. Since Lyme Disease has an incubation period that can range from a couple days to many months, it might not present itself immediately. To be safe, you should encourage your doctor to prescribe medication, typically Doxycycline or Amoxicillin, even if the initial test comes back negative.

Prevention

The easiest way to prevent Lyme Disease is to prepare accordingly before going outdoors. Wear long pants and a long-sleeved shirt in light colors to easily spot ticks and tuck your pants into your socks to prevent ticks and other insects from reaching your ankles. Bug Sprays containing DEET can kill and repel ticks as well, so spray your clothes before you go out. Additionally, avoid fallen logs or areas that deer might frequent because nymph ticks, the age where they feed, have been found to favor those areas.  Though they can be nuisances, ticks should not be a deterrent from spending time outside. Now that you are aware of the risk, you shouldn’t have any problem hiking safely!

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