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No Warranties or Representations
Lyme Disease symptoms vary from person to person. (lymes disease lyme's disease lime disease limes disease)
The data and information presented in this web site are presented in good faith and believed to be accurate regarding Lyme disease (commonly misspelled lymes disease lyme's disease lime disease limes disease) and other related diseases. Any and all liability for the content or any omissions including any inaccuracies, errors, or misstatements in such data or information is expressly disclaimed. The web site is compiled for the sole purpose of informing community members of resources and information pertaining to Lyme Borreliosis Disease and its coinfections. Lyme disease symptoms may vary from person to person.
The Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation, Directors and members are not liable for any direct or indirect damages or any damages whatsoever resulting from loss of use, data or profits, whether in an action of contract, negligence or other tortious action arising out of or in connection with the use or performance of information available from this website.
Consult a qualified Lyme ( Borreliosis ) Disease literate doctor for medical advice if Lyme Disease is suspect to discuss your Lyme Disease Symptoms.
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Prevention and Control
Avoid tick habitats:
Whenever possible, avoid entering areas that are likely to be infested with ticks,
particularly in spring and early summer when nymphal ticks feed. Adults ticks are more of a threat in fall. Ticks favor a moist,
shaded environment, especially areas with leaf litter and low-lying vegetation
in wooded, brushy or overgrown grassy habitat. Both deer and rodent hosts
must be abundant to maintain the enzootic cycle of B. burgdorferi. (for tick removal instructions click here)
Living by a small patch of woods could increase your chances of contracting
Lyme disease, new research suggests. Scientists from several institutions in
the Eastern United States have discovered small forest fragments tend to have
more Lyme disease-carrying ticks than larger areas.
Although such fragments generally have fewer species than larger wooded areas,
some animals actually do better in small forest patches. One such species is the
white-foot mouse, which seems to thrive in fragments smaller than 5 acres. This
could mean trouble for people living nearby because the mice are the main carriers
of Lyme bacteria, researchers said.
Sources for information on the distribution of ticks in an area include provincial and
local health departments, park personnel, and agricultural extension services (at
present this information in Canada is very limited due to lack of field research in most areas).
Use personal protection measures:
If you are going to be in areas that are tick infested, wear light-colored clothing
so that ticks can be spotted more easily and removed before becoming attached.
Wearing long-sleaved shirts. Ticks are usually located close to the ground,
so wearing high rubber boots may provide additional protection.
By pulling the socks over the pants, one stretches the weave of the sock, thus making bigger holes for the flies and ticks to crawl through. It also creates a nice warm chamber between the sock and the leg (a Spa one might say) for the flies and ticks to enjoy themselves and bite to their hearts content without being seen.
A solution to this has been to wear a 3/4 or full boot, pull the pants down over the boot and use a snug fitting elastic band to snug the pants to the boot. Also, taping the pants with a shiny tape prevents the tick from attaching to the pant material. Deadfall logs in the woods, a favorite seat for hikers, hunters etc have been found to harbour many nymphal ticks. see US Dept of Agriculture
The risk of tick attachment can also be reduced by applying insect repellents
containing DEET (n,n-diethyl-m toluamide) to clothes and exposed skin,
and applying permethrin (which kills ticks on contact) to clothes. DEET can be
used safely on children and adults but should be applied according to
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) guidelines to reduce the possibility of toxicity.
TICK REMOVAL
Ticks are simply nasty. They carry many diseases. Some diseases are transmitted very quickly to humans by the tick. Some, like tick paralysis will affect the person with a slow paralysis over a couple of days and can cause death if the attached tick is not found, but the individual will recover within hours once the tick is found and removed (see this Kelowna BC article). The transmission of B. burgdorferi
(the bacteria that causes Lyme disease) from an infected tick is less likely to occur
before 24 hours of tick attachment. For this reason, daily checks for ticks and
prompt removal of any attached tick will help prevent infection.
Herein we discuss three methods of removal... the physicians best technique for an office or emergency room setting, the straw and knot method, and the most common tweezer method.
INTRADERMAL BLISTER TECHNIQUE (for physicians in the office or emergency room setting.)
An injection of xylocaine with adrenaline is administered intradermally underneath the tick. It will generate a large blister at the site. Ticks will release their grip due to the lack of blood to feed on, and because of "positive pressure" from the temporary swelling. The tick will back out on its own in a short time.
STRAW AND KNOT METHOD
Use an ordinary drinking straw and place it at a 45 degree angle with one open end over the tick (the straw is simply being used as a guide to direct the knot). Next, take a length of thread and tie a loose knot at the top or midsection of the straw. Now, slide your knot down the straw to the site. Position the knot underneath the tick's belly, so that the knot will encircle the embedded part only. Slowly tighten the knot to close snugly around the jaws. Now, remove the straw and pull the thread in a steady upward motion. This will cause the tick to detach, without regurgitation.
| 
| Images courtesy of CDC,
Division of
Viral
and Rickettsial Diseases. |
TWEEZERS
Embedded ticks can also be removed using fine-tipped tweezers by place the ends of the tweezers as close to the skin as possible, squeezing them onto the mouthparts of the tick and pulling firmly and steadily backwards until the tick is removed. Any mouth parts that remain can be removed at the doctors office.
DO NOT
use petroleum jelly, a hot match, nail polish, or other products.
Once the tick is out, via any of these methods, you may notice a small amount of blood at the bite site. It's either from the victim but more commonly the tick. In either case, it's best to at least wash the site well with an anti-bacterial saop. Follow up, when available, with an antiseptic.
Taking preventive antibiotics after a tick bite:
The relative cost-effectiveness of post-exposure treatment of tick bites far
out weighs the danger and cost of not treating it. The doctors should make the
decision based on what they would do if it was their child who was bitten.
Therefore, treating persons who only have a tick bite is recommended.
Individuals who are bitten by a deer tick should remove the tick promptly, and
consult with their health care provider.
Persons should promptly seek
medical attention if they develop any signs or symptoms of Lyme disease.
Strategies to reduce tick abundance: 
The number of ticks
in endemic residential areas may be reduced by removing leaf litter, brush- and
wood-piles around houses and at the edges of yards, and by clearing trees and
brush to admit more sunlight and reduce the amount of suitable habitat for deer,
rodents, and ticks. Tick populations have also been effectively suppressed through
the application of pesticides to residential properties. Community-based interventions
to reduce deer populations or to kill ticks on deer and rodents have not been extensively implemented, but may be effective in reducing the community-wide risk of Lyme disease. New approaches such as deer feeding stations equipped with pesticide applicators to kill ticks on deer, and baited devices to kill ticks on rodents, are currently under evaluation.
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