#tick bites

[er-cryptid]

Epidemiology of Babesia

-- found in the eastern United States

-- important enzootic foci: -> Nantucket -> Martha's Vineyard -> Long Island -> Northern Midwest states -> Western US

-- also found in Europe

-- many European cases are seen in splenectomized patients

-- majority of US cases were immunocompetent (not immunocompromised)

-- incubation period after tick bite is 1 to 3 weeks

-- causes mild disease in healthy patients

-- major symptoms: -> fever -> hemolysis -> hemoglobinuria -> chills -> nausea -> fatigue

-- two species infect humans -> B. bovis -> B. microti

-- transmitted by Ixodes scapularis ticks

-- can be fatal

-- parasite limited by humoral responses

-- can undergo antigenic variation

.

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[skinteresting-enough]

I think I got bitten by some bug today, maybe a tick. So I looked up Lyme disease on Wikipedia, and it says the characteristic red mark will usually show up within 4 to 10 days.

So remind me to check the bitten spot again in 4 days.

[tickfleato]

actually it was like. so freeing to realize that u can do writing without a story. if i want to make a book that’s just 100% worldbuilding i can. god knows i want to read Adult Dragonology™ why not simply make my own

[allthecanadianpolitics]

Nova Scotia pharmacists can now treat tick bites

Nova Scotia pharmacists have added the treatment of tick bites to the list of services they offer.

Pharmacists in Nova Scotia now have the authority to diagnose and treat tick bites that can lead to Lyme disease.

Black-legged ticks, which are prevalent in the province, are known to carry the bacteria that can lead to Lyme disease if not treated by antibiotics.

The move, which came into effect Aug. 1, should take some of the pressure off provincial emergency rooms and walk-in clinics, says Curtis Chafe, a pharmacist and former chair of the board of directors at the Pharmacy Association of Nova Scotia.

"They can go to their pharmacy, have a pharmacist do an assessment and see whether or not some preventative treatment is worth pursuing," Chafe said.

Continue Reading.

Tagging: @politicsofcanada

[bpod-bpod]

Inflammation Overload

This is a section of mouse liver showing its Kupffer cells (red), some of which are infected with Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) virus (green). The CCHF virus is transmitted to humans via the bites of infected ticks and causes disease of varying severity – from practically no symptoms at all, or a mild fever, right through to severe haemorrhaging (nosebleeds, bruising, blood loss), multi-organ failure, and death. Studies in model mice have revealed that this dramatic range of symptoms is, in large part, down to differences in the host’s immune system. Indeed, mice that lacked key components of their innate viral-detecting machinery fared better than their wild type counterparts when infected with the virus because they developed far less inflammation. It seems, then, that rather like COVID-19, the most severe cases of CCHF may depend less on the virus itself and more on the excessive inflammatory responses of infected individuals.

Written by Ruth Williams

Image credit Jeffrey M. Smith. Joseph W. Golden and colleagues USA MRIID

Virology Division, United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, Fort Detrick, MD, USA

Image copyright held by the original authors

Research published in PLOS Pathogens, May 2022

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[scotiaeire]

Not Again!

Back in Scotland, my trade in life was animal hide tanning using traditional methods. All by hand.

The local ranger supplied me with a lot of very fresh deerhides and ticks were a huge problem (still are) in the Highlands. Some carry Lyme Disease and I caught it from a tick bite from one of the hides I tanned.

Luckily (because it doesn’t show on everyone who catches Lyme disease) I got the bullseye rash which is particular to Lyme’s. I got a fortnight’s worth of high strength antibiotics which knocked me out somewhat. It was rough.

And now, here in Ireland, I’ve got Lyme’s again. From a tick bite out in the acre behind the cottage. No idea if deer brought it in but it’s more likely to be foxes, rats or pine martens. We have a lot of wild foliage and high marsh grass out there.

I’m not sure when I got bit but doctors say the bullseye rash (which is on my foot this time) appears from two to seven days after the bite. Which explains why I’ve been feeling like crap the past few days. :/

A phone call to the doc (they do phone appointments now due to the increasingly ridiculous virus) and explained the situation and the doctor is giving me a prescription for the antibiotics needed.

I guess I must be a walking buffet for Lyme carrying ticks.

So, based on personal firsthand experience, when you’re walking outdoors and in long grass (yes, even in cities...rats, foxes etc) keep your legs covered. And your arms. And when you get back indoors, if you suspect you’ve been bitten, check everywhere and have someone check the back of you..some ticks can be pinhead size. Do NOT try to burn them off with a cigarette end or anything like that. Sterilize tweezers and try to gently tug the tick out without leaving the head inside (what often happens is the head detaches still in you and the body alone comes off). And if you find any rash afterwards, or feel feverish, get headaches, flu type symptoms, visit your GP asap. Lyme’s is nothing to mess around with..long term is can give you Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, heart and brain damage.

Sorry if this grosses you out. But be safe when walking through grass, city or wildlands. In summer as well as winter. It’s great to wear floaty dresses and bare legs or feet, but trust me. It’s *safer* to wear trousers tucked into boots and close fitting long sleeves.

[greenofallshades]

Okay, you guys, here’s my TED talk about ticks.  When you come inside this summer, especially if you live in an area where tick-borne diseases are common, CHECK YOSEF.  I didn’t, and about ten days ago my husband found one in my hair.  That fucker was engorged with my blood and stuck to my scalp. I don’t know how I missed it when I shampooed and co-washed, but somehow I did.

So he removed it, carefully with tweezers, and put it in a ziploc bag, and I took it to my doctor the next day.  The bite site was red and kind of ugly, and there was a red patch of skin on my forehead, so she put me on Doxycycline, which is the usual antibiotic they give you for tick-borne bacteria.

There are a lot worse drugs around, but this one has its side effects which are mild, but not exactly fun. It can give you nausea, which I’ve had---the other night I made this fantastic Southern dinner, and the nausea hit, and I couldn’t touch it.   And it can take away your appetite.  It’s weird, because the stuff I normally like to eat doesn’t appeal to me.  Plus if I go out in the sun I can get burned.  But, shit, fair as I am that’s pretty much routine, lol.  So it’s Doxy for three weeks.  People have it a lot worse than that, I’m aware, and I’m grateful for the treatment and for finding the tick early.  My brother-in-law was sick for months before they found out he had tick-borne Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.

Anyway, just check.  

https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/geographic_distribution.html

https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/stats/maps.html

[cfsfmmcsandrelatedstudies]

Ticks Bites & Bacteria They Can Carry

“However, B. burgdorferi (that causes Lyme disease) can be associated with a multitude of tick-borne disease co-infectors.

 Anaplasma phagocytohilium, Babesia divergens, Bartonella bacilliformis, Ehrlichia chaffeensis, Borrelia recurrentis, Borrelia miyamotoi, Babesia duncani, Bartonella henselae, Babesia microti, Bartonella quintana.”

http://www.townsendletter.com/July2017/lyme0717.html