As of: February 20, 2024, 9:48 a.m
By: Pauline Wyderka
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Tick bites are not only unpleasant, they can also be dangerous.
What to do if you discover a tick or its bite on the body:
They are small and initially inconspicuous - but they are one of the more dangerous animals in Germany: ticks.
They quickly reach our bodies during walks in nature.
Then they bite and start sucking blood like little vampires.
And just like with vampires, this bite can be fatal in an emergency as it transmits dangerous diseases.
LUDWIGSHAFEN24 reveals what you can do if you are bitten by a tick:
What should you do if you've been bitten by a tick?
The danger posed by ticks also depends on the species.
That's why it helps to take a closer look at a tick bite.
In this country, the common woodbuck transmits bacteria and viruses that can cause dangerous diseases such as Lyme disease and TBE.
If the tick is still very small and only has six legs instead of eight, it is a baby.
Then the risk of disease transmission is even lower, as Frank Dressler from the Hannover Medical School explains.
The risk is greater with adult ticks.
But even then it takes around 12 hours for bacteria to be transmitted.
If you discover a tick, you should remove it immediately and check yourself again to be on the safe side.
Remove ticks – what to do?
With a bit of luck, you can catch the tick before bacteria and viruses have had time to be transmitted.
You can find out how to properly remove a tick here.
It is important not to irritate the tick bite unnecessarily.
That's why you shouldn't use dubious home remedies such as nail polish remover or alcohol to remove it.
Remove ticks correctly
In order to remove a tick correctly and cleanly, we recommend using tick tweezers (
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).
This means they can get into hidden places and easily grab the tick.
However, you often don't even notice that you have been bitten by a tick.
All that can be found on the body is the small red spot where the bloodsucker bit.
Whether after tick removal or if you discover a suspicious bite, you should treat the area first.
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How to treat tick bites?
Even if there is no longer a tick attached to the bite site, you should not irritate it unnecessarily.
If bacteria have already landed in the wound, this promotes transmission.
Instead, you should thoroughly disinfect the bite with a suitable wound disinfectant.
Don't panic if parts of the tick are still stuck in the wound.
Most of the time it is just the remains of the biting tools.
But even then you shouldn't fiddle with the bite site too much.
These residues can usually no longer transmit diseases and are rejected by the body after a while.
You should keep an eye on the remaining parts and the bite and check for redness or inflammation.
How do I know if a tick bite is dangerous?
To make sure the bite isn't changing in a worrying way, it's a good idea to take a photo of it.
You can then observe the area in the following hours and days and compare it with the original condition.
There may be slight itching and redness after the bite.
Both should disappear within a few days.
However, if the redness doesn't go away but grows to the size of a two-euro coin, this is a warning signal, according to Dressler.
It is even more obvious when a ring of infection forms.
If the redness spreads in a ring and becomes paler in the middle, it is the so-called traveling redness, a clear sign of the beginning of Lyme disease.
A tick is stuck in a reddened area of skin.
If discovered, they should be removed quickly.
However, at this stage of a bite, there is initially no need to panic.
© agrarmotive/IMAGO
Should you go to the doctor if you are bitten by a tick?
In some cases you may not be able to remove the tick yourself.
For example, if the animal is in an inaccessible place.
Then you should go to the doctor about it.
Otherwise, a doctor is only necessary if certain symptoms occur.
This includes inflammation of the bite as well as spreading redness or the so-called wandering redness.
But malaise, headaches, fever and joint pain can also be a sign of an infection with a pathogen.
In some cases, however, neurological symptoms also occur, such as facial paralysis, which mainly occurs in children.
However, meningitis and even symptoms of dementia are also less common as a result of Lyme disease.
How quickly do you need to see a doctor after a tick bite?
Without these changes, a visit to the doctor is not necessary.
However, it may take one to two weeks for the above symptoms to appear.
If you notice any of these warning signs, you should see a doctor as quickly as possible.
However, except in rare acute cases, it is not an emergency.
If necessary, the doctor will determine whether Borrelia or TBE have been transmitted.
Lyme disease is usually treated with antibiotics.
There is currently no medical treatment for TBE.
You can only get vaccinated.
TBE risk areas are Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, parts of Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland as well as in Hesse, Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia.
What protects best against ticks?
The best protection against ticks is of course long clothing and closed shoes.
At least if you know that you will be outside in tall grass or bushes.
You should also tuck your pants into your socks if possible.
Since this is not always so easy, especially in the peak season for ticks - namely summer - there are other ways to reduce the risk of a tick bite.
Anti-tick sprays also provide protection for a few hours.
These can be applied directly to the skin, but also to clothing.
If you don't have a special remedy for ticks on hand, a few home remedies, such as coconut oil, will do the trick.
(paw)