Tick bite - detailed instructions on what to do. Symptoms of tick-borne encephalitis infection: how quickly does the disease manifest? How long does it take to feel sick after a tick bite?

The size of the tick's abdomen, not exceeding 2–4 mm, looks negligibly small in relation to any part of the human body

It is impossible to feel the moment of penetration of the arachnid, since it anesthetizes the bite site with saliva, with the help of which it is fixed in the wound.

Local complications after a tick bite

A bite is detected by a person immediately if visible complications arise. Otherwise, it may remain undetected for a long time. Local reactions can be controlled with medications.

Common reaction to inflammation: symptoms, treatment

As the wound heals, the discomfort disappears on its own. Normally, after 2–4 days, the pain dulls and the swelling subsides. All that remains is a red or purple infiltrate directly around the wound, which fades gradually until it disappears completely. The itching becomes unobtrusive. This is a sign of a decrease in the inflammatory response and restoration of affected tissues. The bite site itself becomes covered with a fibrin crust, which disappears by the end of the second week.

Allergy

Local allergy develops within 2–3 hours after the bite. A dark purple or bluish colored seal with a diameter of over a centimeter appears around the tick. The lesion is painful. Some victims report a feeling of “bloating,” pulsation, and severe itching.

With a local allergic reaction, a compacted area of bright red or purple color forms around the bite site

With extensive skin reaction A rash appears on the body - allergic urticaria. It is eliminated with the help of antihistamines (Suprastin, Diazolin, Loratadine).

Allergic urticaria due to an allergy to a tick bite can cover both the entire body and part of it

If you are allergic to a tick bite, you need to select medications together with your doctor. But if it is not possible to get an appointment immediately, you should take any antihistamine that is in the medicine cabinet.

Possible complications and their manifestations

If a tick has infected a person with Lyme disease, the wound will not heal well. A ring erythema forms around it, which looks like diverging circles. The first symptoms of the pathology appear 7–14 days after contact with the tick.

If a tick has infected a person with the virus of tick-borne encephalitis, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis or tick-borne typhus, the local reaction will not have any visible features. Only inflammation of the lymph nodes close to the site can be alarming (for example, if the bite is located behind the ear, the cervical ones are affected, if on the shoulder, the axillary ones, and on inner surface thighs - inguinal). This is how the immune system tries to contain the spread. dangerous viruses throughout the body.

Normally, lymph nodes are never palpable.

Treatment of the bite site

The bite site is treated with something after removing the tick from the skin. If this happens in nature or at home, use any product containing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, brilliant green or iodine. It is also permissible to wash the wound with an antibiotic that is on hand. First, the tablet must be crushed and mixed with boiled water. If you have an ointment containing an antibiotic (for example, tetracycline, erythromycin), treat the bite site itself and the skin around it. As a last resort, use vodka, perfume, eau de toilette.

You need to wipe the source starting from the wound and then around it. This reduces the risk of additional infection from bacteria on the skin.

During treatment, everything that comes into contact with the wound must be disinfected. It is advisable to remove the tick and carry out initial treatment not independently, but in a medical facility.

Under no circumstances should you use ointments containing warming ingredients: pepper extracts, snake and bee venoms, mustard, tar. Such remedies will increase inflammation, making pain and itching unbearable. You should not use regular cosmetic creams on your face and body skin, as they do not provide any benefit.

Means that can be used to treat a tick bite - photo gallery

How long does it take for a tick bite wound to heal?

On average, the wound afterThe bite heals in 1–2 weeks. If this does not happen, think about possible reasons and complications:

The tick was removed in such a way that the head remained in the thickness of the skin. Long-term inflammation is inevitable. The need for surgical cleaning cannot be ruled out.

Complication of secondary infection. This is typical for children and adults who scratch a healing wound and introduce bacteria into it (staphylococci, E. coli, pathogenic fungi, etc.). In case of itching, you need to carefully treat the bite site with antiseptics (alcohol tinctures, iodine, etc.) and ointments that eliminate itching.

Weak immunity. If wounds heal poorly, bites are no exception. This is typical for people with severe chronic diseases (diabetes mellitus, bronchial asthma, decreased activity of the adrenal glands and thyroid gland, dermatological pathologies, a tendency to allergies). Additional medical consultation is needed to prescribe immunostimulating or antibiotic therapy.

10 important facts about tick bites - video

If you love outdoor recreation, you should know that there is such a danger as a tick bite. If you're lucky, you'll only end up losing a couple of grams of blood. But if luck is not on your side, there is a risk of contracting several dangerous diseases at once.

Incubation period after a tick bite

The incubation period after a bite can vary and directly depends on the disease that the tick infected you with. Thus, the most dangerous are Lyme disease (borreliosis) and tick-borne encephalitis. If bacteria from the first disease enter the body, its symptoms will appear in about a week.

The entry of tick saliva into the bloodstream through a bite can cause many diseases.

But signs of encephalitis can appear in the period from 2 to 4 weeks after the bite of a bloodsucker, and sometimes even after 2 months. It depends on the state of the person’s immunity. However, there are other diseases that are transmitted through tick saliva.

What does a tick bite look like on the human body?

The most harmless manifestation is a slight redness around the place where the arthropod was found, or a complete absence of marks on the skin, except for a small hole in the place where the proboscis was located

In some cases, with an increased tendency to allergies, the bite site may swell, there may be a burning and itching sensation, and the appearance of a lump. Such manifestations usually disappear without a trace within a week. When bitten by some types of soft ticks, the affected area of skin can be very painful.

If the body shows increased sensitivity to tick saliva, symptoms such as:

chills, headache, fever;
muscle weakness;
swelling;
feeling of numbness in the limbs;
dyspnea;
problems with coordination, fatigue;
lost appetite;
paralysis.

Such signs require immediate consultation with a doctor.

Tick-borne encephalitis

As already mentioned, in the period from 4 days to 2 weeks this infection may not manifest itself in any way. But after this period, a person begins to burn from fever with a temperature of up to 38–39 degrees, and feel severe soreness in the muscles and eyes. The infected person suffers from nausea, vomiting, and severe headaches. There is redness of the face, neck, arms, upper chest and eyes. This acute period lasts 2–10 days and is characteristic of the febrile form of encephalitis, which occurs most often.

The symptoms of tick-borne encephalitis almost completely replicate the symptoms of a cold, so quite often the disease is diagnosed at an advanced stage

After the acute phase there comes a break when the patient feels much better. But it is at this time that irreversible changes can occur in the central nervous system and brain. Since the listed symptoms are almost identical to those of the flu, it is very important to immediately consult a doctor when they appear.

Video: what is tick-borne encephalitis

Borreliosis (Lyme disease)

As mentioned above, the first thing that indicates this disease is a rash of a specific type large sizes(from 10 to 60 cm in diameter) – ring-shaped erythema. The bitten person may feel itching, burning, and pain at the puncture site. This rash can last from several days to several months. Gradually, the border of the spots becomes swollen and, as it were, convex.

The rash can reach 60 cm in diameter

After cyanosis occurs, the bite site begins to scar, a crust appears on it, which falls off over time. Approximately 14 days after the bite, the skin appears healthy. After the rash appears, the first stage of the disease begins, lasting 3–30 days. At this time the infected person:

feels muscle pain, weakness, pain in the head;
gets tired quickly;
suffers from a sore throat and runny nose;
feels nausea and muscle stiffness in the neck.

After this active phase, the patient forgets about the disease for almost a month. At this time, damage to the joints and heart occurs. Quite often, a rash is interpreted as a sign of a local allergic reaction, and the acute phase is mistaken for ARVI or fatigue. During the absence of visible symptoms, the latent form of Lyme disease begins, the serious consequences of which will appear only after a few months.

Video: Symptoms of Lyme Disease

Monocytic ehrlichiosis

This infection, which enters the body through the saliva of a tick, was first identified in 1987. Its danger is that it provokes inflammatory processes in various internal organs, and a person can either fully recover or die, depending on the course of the disease.

Patients with monocytic ehrlichiosis often suffer from headaches, which are mainly attributed to the onset of a cold.

The incubation period ranges from 1 to 21 days, and the acute phase of the disease can last 2–3 weeks. Symptoms of ehrlichiosis resemble a cold - a strong increase in temperature (up to 39–40 degrees) with chills, dizziness, pain in the head, muscles and joints, as well as abdominal pain (in the stomach).

If affected nervous system, the infected person can feel:

nausea;
dizziness;
increased sensitivity to any external stimuli (hyperesthesia);
facial nerve insufficiency;
serous inflammation of the soft membranes of the brain (aseptic meningitis).

Approximately a third of all cases of ehrlichiosis are characterized by a two-wave course of the disease. Moreover, if the second wave lasts one to one and a half weeks, then in approximately half of the cases the patient develops encephalitis, and 1% of patients may suffer from meningoencephalitis. Some victims experience inflammation of the mucous membrane of the upper respiratory tract (catarrhal phenomena). An extremely small percentage of those infected with this infection may suffer from a maculopapular rash on the body.

Tick-borne relapsing fever

The average incubation period for this disease is 4–20 days, but most often 11–12 days. Immediately after the bite, a red spot appears in its place, and then a papule (pimple filled with clear liquid), the diameter of which reaches up to 0.5 cm. A convex red rim can be observed around the papule. This symptom may last up to 2-3 weeks.

Numerous cherry-colored papules appear 1–2 days after the formation of a papule at the site of the bite

This disease manifests itself in attacks (10–12, sometimes more), following each other after a certain period of time. Each outbreak is characterized by the following symptoms:

an increase in body temperature to 38–40 degrees, combined with chills and severe thirst;
weakness and pain in large joints;
severe headache;
delirium, agitation, hallucinations.

The first attack lasts 1–3, less often 4 days. A day after the break (apyrexia), the next attack begins, lasting from 5 days to a week. Apyrexia after it lasts 2–3 days. Each subsequent attack lasts less, and the intervals between acute phases of the disease are longer.

This disease is curable and in most cases does not cause complications. But sometimes (especially with the African variety of infection) the following can develop:

iridocyclitis, iritis (damage to the visual organs);
meningitis;
neuritis;
acute toxic hepatitis;
pneumonia;
toxic psychosis.

Even death is possible.

Tularemia

This acute infectious disease most often affects the lymph nodes, skin, and in some cases also the pharynx, eyes and lungs. The incubation period ranges from 1 to 30 days, but most often 3–7 days. This disease exists in different clinical forms, each of which depends on the site of infection. Thus, tick saliva provokes the development of the bubonic form, which is regional lymphadenitis. With this form of the disease, lymph nodes throughout the body are affected. Primary symptoms are elevated body temperature (up to 40 degrees), chills, pain in the head, muscles and joints, redness of the eyes and mouth. Fever can be remitting (with sharp fluctuations in temperature - up to 2 degrees or more), intermittent, in which periods of normal and elevated body temperature alternate, or undulating (two to three waves).

Inflamed and greatly enlarged lymph nodes are one of the characteristic features tick-borne tularemia

With tick-borne tularemia, lymph nodes in the armpits, groin, neck, and thighs are affected. Their size can grow to the volume of a chicken egg. The contours of the lymph nodes become clearly defined, and they themselves feel very painful, but over time the pain disappears. After a few months, the size of the buboes decreases until they disappear completely, although they may also become suppurated.

There are other diseases transmitted through tick saliva, but they are much less common.

However, many neglect precautions and begin to think about possible infection not immediately, but only after some time, when the same tick can no longer be found, and it is too late to carry out prevention (it is effective only in the first 3-4 days after the bite).

In this case, there is only one option left - to monitor the condition of the injured person and, at the first symptoms of the disease, go to the hospital and begin treatment. After the bite encephalitis tick in case of infection of the body, the duration of the incubation period of tick-borne encephalitis in humans is several days - at this time, it is impossible to tell from external signs whether the disease is developing in the body or not. And only the first characteristic symptoms usually clearly indicate that the disease has begun. Or, if the usual incubation period has passed and there are no signs of illness, you can rest assured that infection has not occurred.

How long a bite victim needs to carefully monitor his condition and what nuances are important to take into account will be discussed below...

Duration of the incubation period of tick-borne encephalitis

It should be borne in mind that the duration of the incubation period of tick-borne encephalitis is not a constant value - it is individual for each person, and depends on the following factors:

The number of viral particles that enter the body during a bite;
State of the immune system at the time of infection;
The number of ticks that have bitten a person.

Cases have been reported in which encephalitis manifested itself within three days after the bite, but there is also evidence of the development of the disease 21 days after the tick attack. On average, the incubation period of tick-borne encephalitis lasts 10-12 days, and after this period the likelihood of getting sick is significantly reduced.

People with weakened immune systems should watch themselves especially carefully - they are more likely to get sick after a tick bite. In people with strong immunity, even an infection that has entered the body in most cases is suppressed by the immune system, and the disease does not develop.

Note

Also at risk are people who have recently arrived in an area where tick-borne encephalitis is endemic. Old-timers in such areas may have immunity formed naturally - from rare tick bites and small amounts of the virus entering the body. New arrivals do not have such protection, and if bitten, the likelihood of becoming infected is much higher.

Age also plays a role, although not a primary one. According to statistics, children are most susceptible to tick-borne encephalitis - in some areas they account for more than 60% of cases. This may be due both to the imperfection of the child’s body’s immunity compared to adults, and to the banal fact that a child more often finds himself in conditions possible infection(during games with peers) and is not so careful about his own protection from tick bites.

However, there is not a single age group whose representatives are not affected by tick-borne encephalitis at all.

As a result, after a tick bite, any affected person must be monitored for three weeks. If during this time the symptoms of tick-borne encephalitis have not developed, then you can rest assured that the danger of getting sick has passed.

Note

There is another way of contracting encephalitis - through raw milk of infected goats and cows, or corresponding dairy products. Moreover, if goats themselves get sick when infected with the TBE virus, then in cows it multiplies in the body absolutely asymptomatically.

When infected milk is consumed, the incubation of the virus proceeds on average faster, and the disease manifests itself after about a week.

Now let's see what happens to the virus immediately after it enters the human body and how it develops during the incubation period...

Penetration of the TBE virus into the body and the initial stage of tissue damage

Once in the wound, viral particles (actually, these are RNA molecules in a protein shell) penetrate directly from the intercellular space into the host cells. Usually these are cells of the subcutaneous tissue and adjacent muscles (although when infected through dairy products, this can also be the gastrointestinal tract).

When entering a cell, the viral particle loses its envelope, and only RNA appears inside the host cell. It reaches the genetic apparatus in the nucleus, integrates into it, and in the future the cell will constantly produce proteins and RNA of the virus along with its components.

When an infected cell produces enough infectious particles, it can no longer perform its functions and function normally. Cells literally filled with viral particles are destroyed - as a result, a large number of virions enter the intercellular space and spread to other cells, and the decay products of the dead cell (and partly the antigens of the viral particles) cause inflammation. During the incubation period, the number of viral particles in human tissues constantly and very quickly grows.

The photo below shows what tick-borne encephalitis virus particles look like under a microscope:

If the immune system of an infected person is strong enough, it quickly identifies virus antigens as dangerous and begins producing antibodies that bind viral particles, preventing them from infecting new cells. In this case, no symptoms of the disease will appear - gradually the infection will be completely suppressed. But if antibodies are not produced (for example, the immune system does not identify the virus as a dangerous structure for the body), or there are not enough of them, then the viruses pass into the bloodstream and, along with it, are spread throughout the body.

Initially, tick-borne encephalitis affects and destroys the so-called reticuloendothelial cells that perform a protective function. However, just three days after infection, the virus is able to penetrate the central nervous system.

It is the brain that is the most favorable place for the virus to multiply - and here it works in the same way, destroying cells and infecting new ones. But if subcutaneous tissue recovers quickly when damaged, then nerve cells lack this ability. This is why brain damage is dangerous for any organism - the cells of the brain and meninges do not recover for a long time, and their damage leads to permanent health problems.

Despite the fact that in the classic case, encephalitis begins quite abruptly and unexpectedly, sometimes changes in well-being occur already during the incubation period - the so-called prodromal symptoms. These include increased fatigue, weakness, drowsiness, poor appetite, and general malaise. These are the first signals that infection has occurred.

Note

In the vast majority of cases, the infection goes undetected, and the disease takes on an erased asymptomatic form. Infection can only be guessed by the presence of antibodies in the blood of an apparently healthy person.

When the amount of multiplying virus begins to clearly interfere with the normal functioning of the body, the first symptoms of the disease appear. If tick-borne encephalitis corresponds to the Far Eastern subtype, then severe damage to the nervous system occurs quite quickly. Due to the degradation of nerve cells, epileptic seizures, muscle weakness and atrophy, and paralysis may occur.

Mortality in patients with Far East quite high - this is a quarter of all cases of the disease. In Europe, the probability of death from encephalitis is much lower - only 1-2% of patients die.

Is a person contagious during the incubation period?

Today only two are known possible ways infection tick-borne encephalitis– through the bites of infected ticks, as well as through milk and dairy products from infected goats and cows. If a person gets sick with tick-borne encephalitis, then he is not contagious to others. This applies to both the incubation period and the time of the most severe manifestations. The disease will not be transmitted by communication (airborne droplets), touching or through mucous membranes.

The same applies to pets - the owner cannot get an infection from a sick dog that has been infected by a tick (it is useful to keep in mind that dogs in most cases become infected from ticks not with encephalitis, but with piroplasmosis).

So you don’t have to worry about the danger of a person bitten by a tick for others - transmission of TBE from person to person is simply impossible. Even if infected, a person will not be dangerous to his loved ones, you can communicate with him, stay in the same room and care for him - the virus will not be transmitted either by airborne droplets or by contact.

The first symptoms of the disease that you should pay attention to

When monitoring the condition of an adult or child who has been bitten by a tick, you should pay attention to even a slight deterioration in well-being. Increased fatigue over several days of the incubation period can already become one of the first prodromal symptoms of the disease.

Note

As a rule, tick-borne encephalitis begins abruptly. Often patients can even name a specific time when they felt ill. Classic first signs of the disease:

The temperature rises sharply;

Progressive headaches are observed;

Swelling of the face appears;

Sometimes severe nausea and vomiting occur.

Such primary symptoms are characteristic of the relatively mild European subtype of encephalitis. For the more severe Far Eastern variant, in addition to the above manifestations, already at the beginning of the disease, double vision, difficulty speaking and swallowing, and difficulty urinating are typical. Pathologies of the nervous system may immediately be observed - for example, deterioration in the mobility of the neck muscles. Patients are very apathetic and lethargic, any communication increases their headache and causes even more discomfort. In the future, such symptoms only intensify, especially without timely treatment.

It is especially dangerous if signs of brain damage immediately begin to appear. Difficulty in movement, seizures and convulsions may indicate a severe form of the disease, which requires urgent hospitalization. However, in the same way, any progressive symptom should be a signal to immediately go to the hospital.

A doctor’s help is no less important for the relatively “mild version” of tick-borne encephalitis (European). This is absolutely not a disease in which you can rely only on the strength of your body. Vitamins, exercise and fresh air, of course, are useful, but they definitely will not cure tick-borne encephalitis. Self-medication and delay are absolutely unacceptable for this disease.

Sometimes situations arise when immediate delivery of a person to medical institution impossible. In such cases, you need to place the patient's bed in a darkened but well-ventilated room. It is recommended to give him plenty of water. Food should be homogeneous so as not to cause unnecessary headaches by chewing. If urgently needed, painkillers can be used. Both at the very beginning of the disease and later, it is necessary to provide the sick person with maximum physical, mental and spiritual peace.

Note

When transporting to the hospital, it is important to position the person comfortably in the car to reduce shaking. In this case, the car should be driven at low speed and sharp turns should be avoided. It should be noted that the more time passes from the onset of the disease, the harder the patient tolerates any movement. Therefore, when the first symptoms occur, you should consult a doctor as quickly as possible.

Further development of tick-borne encephalitis and its possible consequences

The high temperature with which the disease usually begins lasts for about a week from the end of the incubation period. But this period can reach up to 14 days.

At the height of the disease, the symptoms of encephalitis can vary greatly, depending on its form. In turn, the more severe the form will be, the more the virus multiplies in nerve cells.

In the mildest form - febrile - there are no symptoms of brain damage at all, and only standard infectious manifestations are observed. Therefore, this form of encephalitis can sometimes be confused with the flu.

The most common form of CE, meningeal, is similar in symptoms to meningitis. Patients suffer from severe headaches, increased intracranial pressure and photophobia. This changes the composition of the cerebrospinal fluid. However, the meningeal form, for all its danger, is also highly treatable.

The disease is especially severe in the meningoencephalitic form, which has a high mortality rate. Multiple small hemorrhages are found in the brain, gray matter dies, convulsions and seizures are observed. Recovery is possible, but it can take years, and full recovery is very rare. Due to necrosis of brain tissue, a decrease in intelligence may develop, which leads to disability and the development of mental disorders.

There are other forms of tick-borne encephalitis - poliomyelitis and polyradiculoneuritis. In this case, the virus is localized predominantly in the spinal cord, causing a complex motor disorders. This may be tingling or numbness of the muscles, a feeling of “running goosebumps”, weakness of the limbs. If the outcome is unfavorable, the disease can result in paralysis and death.

Statistics show that about a third of patients who had symptoms of serious damage to the nervous system completely restore their health. We are talking about all the forms of encephalitis listed above. However, the mortality rate for severe forms of the disease ranges from 20 to 44%, depending on the region. Separate group sick people (from 23 to 47%) are people who have significant consequences after illness, including disabled people.

The photo below shows the consequences of tick-borne encephalitis (atrophy of the muscles of the shoulder girdle against the background of the polio form of TBE):

With this in mind, it becomes quite obvious that if there are any obvious signs of health problems during the incubation period of tick-borne encephalitis, it is necessary to take the victim of a tick bite to a doctor as soon as possible to clarify the situation and begin treatment. The sooner treatment begins (if it is required), the significantly lower the risk of possible severe consequences CE.

Treatment of tick-borne encephalitis

The main method of treating the disease is a course of injections of specific antiencephalitis gamma globulin. This substance is a protein from the class of antibodies that neutralizes tick-borne encephalitis viral particles in the body, preventing them from infecting new cells. The same immunoglobulin is also used for emergency prevention of the disease.

Ribonuclease is often used in treatment - a special enzyme that “cuts” the RNA strand (and this is the hereditary material of the virus), blocking its reproduction. If necessary, the patient may be prescribed interferon, a special protein that enhances the cells’ own protection from damage by viral particles.

There is usually no need to use all three drugs at once, but such a need may arise if a severe form of the disease develops.

Despite the level of severity of symptoms, strict bed rest is indicated for all patients with tick-borne encephalitis. How more people moves, especially in initial period illness, the higher the chance of complications. Any increased intellectual activity during the acute period of the disease is also prohibited. At the same time, it is important to increase the duration of sleep, eat varied and sufficiently high-calorie foods.

Normally, the patient must be treated in a hospital for 14 to 30 days. The minimum period of treatment for CE is required for the mildest (febrile) form of the disease, the maximum for meningeal form is from 21 to 30 days.

After this time, patients usually fully recover and can return to their normal lives. However, for two months after recovery, you should choose the most gentle daily routine for yourself and not overwork yourself. The body will still need time to fully recover.

For more severe forms of tick-borne encephalitis, the period spent in hospital is between 35-50 days. The patient can either be completely cured or suffer serious complications in the form of impaired motor functions, muscle numbness, and mental disorders.

Resumption of well-being in such cases can take from six months to several years, and sometimes the consequences of encephalitis remain with a person for life.

Important to know

Sustained positive dynamics in the first days of treatment do not guarantee recovery. There is a two-wave form of encephalitis, when after a week of imaginary improvement a new acute febrile period begins. Therefore, during treatment you must strictly adhere to the doctor’s recommendations to avoid relapse. With the correct actions of the patient, in most cases, complete recovery is observed, but for this it is important to treat interaction with the doctor as responsibly as possible.

Incubation period of other tick-borne infections

In general, the most dangerous period after a tick bite is two weeks. Taking into account possible fluctuations in the duration of the incubation period, it would be optimal to monitor the condition of the affected person for 21 days after removing the tick. Of course, there have been precedents for later manifestations of disease after a bite, but these cases are very rare. Therefore, if three weeks have passed since the tick attack, and everything is fine, then we can confidently say that no infection has occurred.

Despite the danger of tick-borne encephalitis and the need to monitor your condition after a tick bite, it is worth considering that infection, fortunately, occurs quite rarely. Not all ticks carry encephalitis, even in areas where this disease is endemic. For example, in Siberia and the Far East, only 6% of ticks are infected with the virus.
Most often, those who have been severely bitten become infected. Such risk groups include tourists, foresters, hunters - these people can regularly remove 5-10 ticks from themselves. If a person is bitten by one tick, then the risk of getting sick is minimal. With a high probability, nothing terrible will happen after such a bite, so there is no need to panic. But it is imperative to monitor your well-being, just as you must consult a doctor if obvious symptoms of the disease appear during the standard incubation period.

Blood-sucking ticks are carriers of numerous infections and belong to the class of especially dangerous ones. Infection occurs directly through the bite of an arthropod. The most serious infections carried by ticks are encephalitis and borreliosis.

The peak of registered bites occurs in the first half of summer, but tick activity is observed until late autumn. The tick can get caught on clothing and then work its way to exposed skin. Often penetration dangerous tick occurs through the sleeves, at the bottom of the trousers, in the collar area.

Classification of ticks

These representatives of arthropods rarely reach 3 mm in size; the size of mites generally ranges from 0.1 to 0.5 mm. As befits arachnids, ticks lack wings.

Ticks are classified into two main groups:

Sterile - those individuals that are not carriers of any infections;
Infected ticks that are carriers of viral, microbial and other diseases (encephalitis).

It is worth noting that most often ticks begin to bite early spring and late autumn. Please note that not all ticks are carriers infectious diseases. Despite this, even a sterile tick can lead to serious consequences. This is why it is so important to know what to do in specific situation when attacked by a tick.

Tick bites are the first signs in people

As a rule, the first sign of a bite is the presence of an insect attached to the victim's body. Most often, areas of the body hidden under clothing and places with a well-developed capillary system are affected.

A tick bite is usually painless, and this fact goes unnoticed even after the tick finishes drinking blood and falls off the skin.

The first signs after a tick bite may appear after 2-4 hours. These include:

headache;
weakness;
photophobia;
drowsiness;
chills;
aching joints;
pain in the muscles.

If there is redness during the bite, this may be a normal allergic reaction. But red spots that reach 10-12 cm in diameter may be a symptom. They can appear either after 2 days or weeks later.

Overly sensitive people may experience signs of a tick bite such as:

nausea;
vomiting and stomach upset;
severe headache;
dizziness;
wheezing breathing;
hallucinations.

If you are bitten by a tick, measure your body temperature every day for 10 days! Its increase 2-9 days after the bite may indicate that you have become infected with an infectious disease!

Symptoms of a tick bite

Most often, the first symptoms begin to manifest themselves 7-24 days after the bite. There have been cases where a sharp deterioration in the condition was observed after 2 months. Therefore, it is necessary to monitor your health status.

If the tick has not been infected, then the redness and itching quickly disappear without leaving a trace, and no other symptoms appear. If the insect has been infected, then after the tick has bitten, signs such as general weakness, chills, drowsiness, body aches, joints, photophobia, and numbness in the neck appear.

Please note that the affected area is painless, with only slight round redness.

The severity of symptoms may vary. How tick bites manifest depends on age, individual characteristics, the general condition of a person, on the number of attached insects.

The main symptoms of an encephalitis tick bite in humans:

Body aches
Frequent headaches

If you have such symptoms, you can’t put anything off; you should immediately go to the clinic.

	Description of symptoms
Temperature	One of the most common symptoms If bitten by a tick, there is an increase in body temperature. This occurs within the first hours after the bite and is an allergic reaction to insect saliva entering the body. An elevated temperature may appear after 7-10 days, when the bitten person forgets to think about the experience. If during this period it is recorded high temperature, this is a sign of the development of an infectious process.
Redness after bites	This symptom is characteristic of Lyme disease. The tick site is redder and resembles a ring. This can happen 3-10 days after the lesion. In some cases, a skin rash occurs. Over time, the redness after the bite changes in size and becomes much larger. Over the next 3-4 weeks, the rash begins to gradually subside and the spot may disappear completely.
Rash	The rash that occurs due to a tick bite, also known as erythema migrans (pictured), is a symptom of Lyme disease. It looks like a bright red spot with an elevated central part. May also be dark red or blue, making it look like a bruise on the skin.

The earlier treatment is started, the better the prognosis. Therefore, it is important to get vaccinated on time, to insure against tick-borne encephalitis, so that injections with immunoglobulin and subsequent therapy are free of charge.

What does a tick bite look like on a person's body?

The tick attaches to the human body using a hypostome. This unpaired outgrowth performs the functions of a sensory organ, attachment and blood sucking. The most likely place for a tick to attach itself to a person from bottom to top is:

groin area;
stomach and lower back;
chest, armpits, neck;
ear area.

Bites can often manifest themselves in different ways. Let's look at the photo of what a tick bite looks like on a human body:

If, after removing the tick, a small black dot remains at the site of suction, this means that the head has come off and must be removed. To do this, the affected area is treated with alcohol and the wound is cleaned using a disinfected needle. After removing the head, you need to lubricate the wound with alcohol or iodine.

Be sure to save the tick (put it in plastic bag) so that research can be carried out in the laboratory and it can be determined whether it was an encephalitis tick or not. The severity of the consequences for the bitten person or animal and further therapy depend on this.

It is necessary to understand that a small tick bite can lead to serious problems with health. Thus, encephalitis can cause paralysis of the limbs and lead to death.

If you are close to the city, go to the emergency room immediately; specialists will remove the tick without unnecessary risk. But there is a risk of crushing it when you remove it yourself, and if the crushed tick turns out to be infected, a large amount of the virus will enter the body.

The further course depends on how quickly the person reacted to the defeat. If he ignored the symptoms and did not consult a doctor, the prognosis is extremely unfavorable. The fact is that tick bites can only manifest themselves after a while.

Consequences for the body

A tick bite can cause a number of diseases in humans. Naturally, if you do not pay attention to this, serious consequences are possible.

Below is a list possible consequences tick-borne infections, in the form of lesions:

nervous system – encephalomyelitis, various options epilepsy, hyperkinesis, headaches, paresis, paralysis;
joints – arthralgia, arthritis;
cardiovascular system – arrhythmia, blood pressure surges;
lungs - a consequence of pulmonary hemorrhages;
kidney – nephritis, glomerulonephritis;
liver – digestive disorders.

In severe forms of the listed infections, loss of the ability to self-care, decreased ability to work (up to group 1 disability), epileptic seizures and the development of dementia are possible.

Diseases that can occur from bites

Tick-borne encephalitis
Tick-borne typhus
Hemorrhagic fever

Borreliosis. The causative agent of this disease is spirochetes, which are spread in nature, including by ticks. The disease occurs in a chronic form, affecting almost all organs and systems. When treating borreliosis (Lyme disease), antibiotics are mandatory! They are used to suppress pathogens. Lyme borreliosis is caused by a microorganism from the group of spirochetes.
Tick-borne encephalitis. Infectious viral disease, transmitted through tick bites, characterized by fever and damage to the central nervous system. The consequences of a bite from an encephalitis tick can be very disastrous. In some cases, after suffering from encephalitis, people become disabled.
Tick-borne typhus. The rash from typhus is initially often called pink, although this first symptom appears only on fair skin. The next stage is the blanching of the rash, and later it turns red and darkens again. In severe cases of typhus, where hemorrhagic elements are visible, bleeding into the skin (petechiae) often develops.
Hemorrhagic fever. The danger lies in severe and sometimes irreversible damage to vital organs. All people with suspected hemorrhagic fever are subject to hospitalization in the boxed department of the infectious diseases hospital.

Prevention

It is best to get vaccinated earlier, because after infection the vaccine is prohibited. The vaccine is indicated for those who live in a disadvantaged region and are professionally associated with the forest.
First of all, when going to tick habitats, you need to dress properly. Clothes should have long sleeves, trousers, and you should also put something on your head, preferably a hood. Thermal underwear can be very convenient, as it fits perfectly to the body and prevents insects from crawling into secluded places.
When going to an area where ticks are found, be as “armed” as possible, take all the necessary things that you will need in case of a tick bite.
When moving through the forest, stay in the middle of the paths, avoiding tall grass and bushes.

Symptoms of infection transmitted by a tick may subside before the first symptoms appear. different quantities time - from one day to several weeks. This depends on the type of disease and many factors, such as immunity, age, duration of tick suction, etc.

These arachnids can be large enough or so small that they are almost impossible to see. There are approximately 850 various types ticks. Most of their bites are not harmful, but sometimes they can cause moderate to severe illness.

Subsequently, disturbances in the functioning of the cardiac and/or nervous system, kidneys, adrenal glands, liver damage and even death may occur.

Symptoms

The male drinks blood and falls off after about an hour. For a female, this process can take more than a week.

The first symptoms of major diseases transmitted by ticks usually resemble the flu

You should monitor for symptoms for several weeks after the bite. These include sore muscles or joints, a stiff neck, headache, weakness, fever, swollen lymph nodes and other flu-like symptoms, and a red spot or rash starting at the site of the bite.

Here are some symptoms of bites, which vary depending on the type of tick:

Stopping breathing
Difficulty breathing
Blisters
Rashes
Severe pain in the area lasts several weeks (from some types of mites)
Swelling at the site of the bite (from some types of ticks)
Weakness
Impaired coordination of movements.

If a person is bitten by an infected tick, the incubation period (the time between infection and the onset of symptoms) is about 5-7 days. Symptoms may vary depending on the condition of the body. Age and underlying health conditions may influence the severity of the infection.

Typical features may include the presence of a black spot at the site of the bite, fever, severe headache and rash. Black spot is a scab and looks like a small ulcer (2-5 mm in diameter) with a black center. They can be single or multiple and are sometimes very difficult to find. Usually appears after the onset of headache and general malaise. Lymph nodes in this area may be enlarged.

A rash is usually, but not always, a sign of an infected tick bite, but is rare. Appears as small red patches of skin, sometimes slightly raised, that begin on the extremities and spread to the torso, and can occur throughout the body, including the palms of the hands and soles of the feet.

Lyme disease (tick-borne borreliosis)

“Classic” migratory erythema rash with tick-borne borreliosis

Symptoms of early localized Lyme disease (stage 1) may appear a few days to a few weeks after infection. These are similar to flu symptoms and may include:

Fever and chills
General poor health
Headache
Pain in muscles and joints
Neck stiffness (stiff neck).

You may also see a bull's eye rash, a flat or slightly raised red spot at the site of the bite. It can be large and increase in size. This rash is called erythema migrans. Without treatment, it can last 4 weeks or longer.

Symptoms may come and go. Without treatment, the bacteria can spread to the brain, heart and joints.

Symptoms of early widespread Lyme disease (stage 2) may occur several weeks to several months after the bite and may include:

Numbness or pain in the nerve area
Paralysis or weakness of facial muscles
Problems with your heart, such as fast heartbeat, chest pain, or shortness of breath.

Symptoms of late disseminated Lyme disease (stage 3) may occur months or years after infection. The most common among them are muscle and joint pain. Other symptoms may include:

Abnormal muscle movement
Joint tumor
Muscle weakness
Numbness and tingling
Speech problems
Cognitive problems.

Tick-borne encephalitis

Most people who are infected show no symptoms at all—this is called the asymptomatic form. In other cases, the incubation period lasts from 4 to 28 days. Symptoms usually appear more quickly (within 3-4 days) if the disease is contracted through drinking milk or dairy products rather than through a bite.

They often appear in 2 stages.

In the first stage, symptoms are similar to the flu and usually last from 1 to 8 days, including: