Lyme Disease
Lyme Disease
Lyme disease is a bacterial infection transmitted by infected ticks, often leading to a characteristic circular, oval or bullseye rash called Erythema Migrans.
The disease is most likely to be experienced by people exposed to woodland or grassland environments and occurs when a blood-feeding, black legged tick that is infected with the Borrelia bacteria bites a human.
Not all ticks carry the Borrelia infection and the chances of contracting Lyme Disease from a tick bite remain low in the UK, however any ticks should be removed promptly to minimise the risk as much as possible.
Signs & Symptoms
- Fever, headache, flu like symptoms
- Fatigue
- Skin Rash – Circular or oval in appearance
- Muscle and joint pain
Symptoms usually appear 1 to 4 weeks after being bitten by an infected tick but can be as long as months after the bite occurred. Symptoms can last for several weeks. The rash is usually not hot to the touch or itchy. On dark skin the rash may appear like a bruise and can be hard to see.
More severe symptoms can occur in a small number of patients over time if the disease is not diagnosed and treated. These include:
- Joint pain and swelling
- Nerve problems
- Heart problems
- Memory problems
Treatment
- Remove ticks promptly to minimise the risk of contracting Lyme Disease (see below advice).
- Seek medical advice (GP or Doctor) if you have symptoms as above.
- Tell the medical adviser you have have been in a location where ticks exist (woodlands, forest, outdoors etc).
- You will normally require a blood test to identify Lyme disease.
- Treatment for Lyme disease, once diagnosed will be via a course of antibiotics.
Tick Removal
- Use a tick removal tool or fine tipped tweezers. These are ideal items to keep handy if working in the outdoors.
- Grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible.
- Try not to crush or squash the tick and pull upwards to remove the tick from the skin.
- Clean the bite area with antiseptic or soap and water.
- Monitor the area of the tick bite for potential rash (see signs and symptoms).
