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To avoid tick bites:
- Avoid tick habitats such as wooded or
brushy areas, leafy debris, or high grasses.
(Especially true in May-July, when ticks are most active.)
- Walk in the center of trails to avoid
contact with overgrown grass and brush at trail edges.
- When you go outside, wear light-colored
clothing so you can spot ticks more easily.
- Wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants
outside to minimize skin exposure to ticks.
- Tuck pant legs into socks or boots and
shirt into pants to keep ticks on the outside of clothing.
- Spray insect repellent containing a
20-30% concentration of
DEET (10% for children;
DO NOT use repellent on infants and AVOID getting
pesticides in children’s mouths and eyes) on clothes and on exposed skin
other than the face, or treat clothes (especially pants, socks, and
shoes) with permethrin, which kills ticks on contact. Follow the
manufacturer’s instructions when applying repellents.
- After being outdoors, place any clothes
that have had contact with a tick habitat in the drier and dry at a high
heat. Inspect body surfaces carefully (including scalp, armpits, and
groin area), and remove attached ticks with tweezers (See
How to remove a tick).
- Check any outdoor pets for ticks
regularly.
If you are bitten by a
tick:
-
Remove
the tick Try to remove it as quickly as possible,
since it takes roughly 24-48 hours for the tick to transmit the Lyme
bacteria to you. Place the tick in a sealed bag or baggie (with a zip
lock is great) in case you need it for analysis by your doctor later.
- Do not panic. Only about 1-3% of deer
ticks actually carry Lyme disease, so the odds are good that you will be
fine.
- Watch for
Symptoms of Lyme disease, including a
bull’s-eye or other rash, flu-type symptoms, headaches, joint pain, and
fatigue. If you suspect that you may have Lyme disease, contact your
physician.
- Make an appointment with your physician
and tell him/her that you have been bitten by a tick. If your doctor is
not familiar with Lyme or fails to acknowledge the possibility of Lyme,
go to a Lyme-literate physician or look for a referral from your local
Lyme support group. Do not shrug off the possibility of Lyme disease,
especially if you are having symptoms! The sooner you receive treatment,
the more likely for a full recovery.
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