Internal Medicine

Tick / tick bite

Synonyms

Lat. Ixodes ricinus, also known as the common wood tick, shield tick

definition

Ticks are the most important vectors of infectious diseases in Europe’s temperate climates Genus of arachnids.

The different types of Ixodes can only be distinguished by specialists. In Central Europe is Ixodes ricinus the most common tick that "sucks" on humans.

Appearance

The size of the "hungry", i.e. the tick not yet saturated with blood is between 3-4 mm. Like spiders, the tick has four pairs of legs that arise from the back shield that is only 0.5-1 mm thick.
The foremost two legs are not used for locomotion, but are rather with fine sense organs and Barbs occupied (this sensory apparatus becomes Haller's organ called). If the tick is looking for a host, it climbs a blade of grass or other low plants and stretches its front pair of legs into the air. If the sensory organs were warm, this is the sign for the tick to cling to the passing victim with its barbs.

The tick is not picky about it. When she arrives at the host, she sets out to find a suitable place where she can e.g. difficult to reach and protected from scratching hands or paws.
Ticks prefer thin areas of skin in dark, warm areas that are well supplied with blood (e.g. in folds of skin such as the armpit or genital area or, in dogs, especially on the back).
The head of the tick is equipped with two bite pliers, with which the tick bites into the skin of its victim, in order to then extend a lancing device with which it skin pierced and on which e.g. the causative agent of Lyme disease are located. The actual tick bite is actually a Tick bite.

Once the tick has soaked up, it loosens your bite and falls off the host. In this condition, it can be three times its original size and is therefore between 1.5 and 1.8 cm tall. Sucking so much blood takes time, so that two weeks can easily pass between the tick bite and falling away from the host. The tick's body is now greyish-yellow in color.

Occurrence and epidemiology

The Ioxides-ricini transmit the pathogen of the in Central Europe TBE, of the Lyme disease and human granulocytic Ehrlichiosis (very rare disease).
There is a possibility against the To vaccinate TBE, which is given particular weight due to the lack of therapy options for the disease that has already been acquired (see also our topic TBE ).
Against the Lyme disease vaccination is not possible, the best protection here is exposure prophylaxis (avoidance of contact). In the meantime there was a Borellis vaccination against "American Borreliosis", but it was withdrawn from the US market.
The FMSE virus is only found in locally limited endemic areas in ticks. The Borrelia are not limited to the TBE endemic areas, but are more widespread. In addition, the contamination, i.e. the percentage of ticks that are carriers of the bacterium is far higher than that of the TBE virus, it is up to 30%.
A particularly high level of borrelia contamination of ticks can be found in the Low mountain ranges such as the Bavarian Forest and the Kraichgau.

Exposure prophylaxis

For the risk of infection outdoors, the seasonal tick activity decisive. In Central Europe, Ixodes ricinus has a bimodal seasonal activity with a main peak in the Months of May and June and a smaller peak in the months September and October. During these months you should pay attention to the right clothing when walking through the woods and meadows, i.e. wear sturdy shoes, no sandals, long trousers and long outerwear.
If possible, the trouser legs should be tucked into the socks. The right clothing alone is not 100% protection against ticks. In search of the right spot, the ticks sometimes crawl off clothing for several hours and can get under it
A tick repellent should also be applied to arms and legs. Ticks climb on grasses and small plants, so be careful not to attack them if possible tall grass or low bushes to roam past. In addition, ticks prefer places with high humidity, e.g. B. places close to water or overgrown forest floor.
Do not sit unprotected on the floor, always use a sufficiently large mat. After being outdoors, you should check your body for ticks - especially the armpit and pubic area.

Tick removal

The pretreatment of the tick with glue or castor oil is no longer recommended today! The animals die from this treatment, but in agony they vomit - and pump pathogens into the blood.

The tick bite

If you have discovered a stuck tick, you should act as quickly as possible and remove it properly. Only animals that remain on the body for longer than 12 hours transmit diseases such as Lyme disease or TBE; the risk is greatest only after 48-72 hours of contact. To remove the tick, it is best to use tweezers or special tick tongs from the pharmacy, with which you grab the head of the tick as close to the skin as possible. You have to be careful neither to squeeze the tick (this causes the infectious saliva to empty into the bite wound) nor to turn it (this increases the risk of turning the head away from the body, so that the body is removed, the head of the tick but remains on the skin and can continue to release saliva).

After pulling the tick out, the site of the bite should be examined to see if there is any remains of the head in the wound. The wound should then be disinfected. The tick is then best wrapped in cling film or stuck between two strips of scotch tape. If the animal is packed airtight in this way, it can be taken to the doctor so that it can be tested for pathogens. Read also Lyme disease test on this subject.

Did the tick bite you and you want to find out more about the consequences of a tick bite? Then you can find more information here: What can be the consequences of a tick bite?