NPHC: When do Ticks Wake Up and How to Protect Against Them?
Due to rapidly changing climate conditions, when the temperature during the cold season rises to 4 degrees Celsius or higher, arachnids such as ticks that spread dangerous diseases wake up from hibernation. Here are some useful tips on how we can protect against them, when they are most active, and what diseases they transmit, shared by Milda Žygutienė, senior specialist in the Communicable Diseases Management Division at National Public Health Centre under the Ministry of Health (NPHC).
– By the meteorological calender, the spring has started, what about ticks? Have they woken up after hibernation? When are they active? When do tick-borne diseases have their peak incidence?
– In winter, ticks survive under the snow cover and when the air temperature rises to 4-5 degrees Celsius, they start awakening. Therefore, when the average daily temperature reaches 5-7 degrees Celsius, we must remain vigilant as ticks become active. The seasonal incidence peak is registered in June-October. According to the data we possess, it is during this period that the number of infected people is the highest.
– Lithuania is an endemic area for tick-borne encephalitis, i.e., infected ticks are found throughout the country. Are there places where tick populations are higher in the country? Could you name the areas or Counties where tick-borne diseases are registered more often?
– Well, ticks are found throughout the country, both in rural and urban areas. These arachnids like moist habitat, not heated by the sun, hence they prevail in deciduous forests. Most ticks are found in the areas with many wild animals, their regular feeders. Ticks can be found on the edges of forest tracks, in dense brushwood: raspberry, alder, nut groves, young forests, parks with lush grass. I cannot single out a specific County where risk of infection is the highest. In recent years, the most cases of tick-borne diseases have been registered in Vilnius, Kaunas and Utena Counties.
– Most people know that ticks transmit Lyme disease and encephalitis. How quickly can an attached tick infect a person?
– Since the tick-borne encephalitis virus is present in the salivary glands of ticks, an infected tick can transmit it to a person within the first 10 minutes after it inserts its feeding tube. The pathogen that causes Lyme disease (Borrelia) is localized in the midgut of ticks, so it needs more time to transmit – a day or more.
– How many people in Lithuania get infected with tick-borne encephalitis and Lyme disease per year?
– The incidence of tick-borne diseases is fluctuating. The number of infected persons may increase one year and decrease the next. On average, up to 3 thousand cases of Lyme disease and 700 cases of encephalitis are registered per year. Last year, 2,380 cases of Lyme disease were reported in the country (incidence rate of 84.8 cases/ 100 thousand population) and 377 cases of tick-borne encephalitis (incidence rate of 13.4 cases/100 thousand population), and 1 death. The mortality rate from tick-borne encephalitis in Europe is 0.5-4%. About a third of people who contract tick-borne encephalitis do not fully recover, i.e., they have residual effects of the disease.
– How to protect against tick-borne encephalitis and Lyme disease?
– Undoubtedly, the most effective means that can help prevent tick-borne encephalitis is vaccination. There is no vaccine against Lyme disease, only general preventive measures.
– When is the best time to vaccinate?
– Vaccination against tick-borne encephalitis is possible all year round. Those who want to get vaccinated for the first time and acquire immunity will need three doses of tick-borne encephalitis vaccine given in the prescribed order. Later, depending on the age, a boost dose of tick-borne encephalitis vaccine every 3-5 years is needed to strengthen immunity. Tick-borne encephalitis vaccines can be given to children over one year of age and adults. For vaccinations, it is recommended to consult your family doctor.
– What to do if a tick sucked in? Should we take it to be tested to see if it was infected?
– The tick should be pulled out as soon as possible. Firmly grasp it as close to the skin as possible, do not squeeze its body, do not twist it and do not use oil but pull it upwards with a sudden movement. If you fail to completely remove the tick and the head remains, there is no need to do anything, your body will remove it as a foreign body itself. After removing the tick disinfect the bite site.
It is possible to examine ticks in laboratories, but the tick must be delivered alive for examination. In addition, it is worth considering whether it is necessary. An infected tick does not necessarily transmit Lyme disease, and even if it does, it can be treated with antibiotics. When infected with the tick-borne encephalitis virus, there are no effective preventive measures that can help after a bite, you simply need to observe your health. If, after a tick bite, a spreading pink spot with a diameter of several centimeters appears on the skin, if you start having headache, muscle pain, fever, and general weakness, consult a doctor and do not forget to mention you had a tick attached. These might be first symptoms of Lyme disease or tick-born encephalitis.
Last updated: 17-05-2023
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