removing ticks

This post contains information relating to potentially serious and long term outcomes from tick bites; the information provided is my own personal opinion and should not be relied on as a sole source of advice. I do not accept any liability for consequences arising for others who follow my own advice.

Removing ticks rapidly and effectively seems to be critical and is also one of the most contentious aspects of the Lyme's disease issue. The advice we received from the hospital was to use a small amount of alcohol or preferably petrol to anaesthetise the tick before removing with tweezers. This goes against the advice on many websites although is endorsed on some. My own trawl of the web has taken me through many hundreds of pages, if ticks are why you have stumbled across this blog I advise taking a look here http://www.lymediseaseaction.org.uk/information/tick_removal.htm the site seems one of the best in my opinion. They sell tick removers that cost very little and should prob be carried by anyone tracking in the hills or bush during warm weather- carrying a couple of little bits of plastic is far more practical than herding your ow flock of guinea fowl wherever you go. The site contains some important advice:
Do Nots

* Do Not use your fingers.
* Do Not squeeze the tick.
* Do Not use a burning match.
* Do Not use a cigarette.
* Do Not use petroleum jelly.
* Do Not use cleaning fluid.

Again the following advice is my own opinion - it seems rapid removal is important; rapid as in within a few hours of the tick attaching, if you don't notice a tick I guess under armpits or groin or anywhere it is likely that it will be squeezed accidentally in some way by natural body movements or even undressing, this might well increase the chance of infection.
1. If you are in tick country be self aware of any irritation and carry out a whole body inspection especially of children within 4 hours or every 4 hours.
2. if you find a tick and do not have a removal device to hand you may have to use tweezers or if you have them long fingernails. Personally I have removed a fair few over the last 40 years intact by using long fingernails. I start a few mm away from the tick rucking the skin into a little ridge as I close in on it. As the nail contacts the tick I start twisting anticlockwise as I lift the tick out via a fairly rapid extraction. Keep the tick if possible, this might be useful for medics if you do get an infection.
3. Inspect with a magnifying lense if possible - a Swiss Army knife comes in handy. You are looking to see if any mouth parts have been left behind - these are really tiny but can cause a range of infections. I have seen these destroyed in the field by a red hot knife end and also cut out with a sharp knife end - I do not know if either strategy is advisable but they would seem sensible actions to me. If anyone has any advice on this please leave a comment.
4. If you are in an area where Lyme's disease is known to be prevalent take the tick with you to a medic and explain what has happened. If you don't have any grounds for suspecting Lyme's infection you should keep an eye out for a spreading rash that can develop over the next 3 - 7 days. This is characterised by a red outer ring expanding away from the bite site. If the rash develops go straight to a medic do not delay but do not panic or rush or call an ambulance either. At this stage antibiotic treatment should defeat any infections and reduce the potential for any long term problems.
5. Not every one develops the rash, keep vigilant for other symptoms - aching joints, fever, irrational or unusually moody behaviour seem to be prime symptoms - not relating these (or a host of other nervous system symptoms) to the tick bite episode seems to be one of the main causes of misdiagnosis. Unfortunately these symptoms may not manifest for weeks, months or even years.

Lyme's disease is serious and can lead to heart block, facial paralysis, para or quadriplegia, and a very wide range of conditions associated with the nervous system. it is thought that many cases go unreported and undiagnosed - if you are at all suspicious of any insect bite you should seek medical advice - being wrong and finding there is no problem is a great outcome; if you ignore a potentially life changing bite you might regret it for the rest of your life.