Walks in the countryside or in the forest arrive and with them a lot of inconvenience such as tick bites. Has your child been bitten? Here are the steps to follow.
The tick is part of the mite family and despite its small size, it can cause great damage. Tick Ixodes ricinus is the most widespread in Europe and can be the cause of many diseases, including Lyme borreliosis. We speak of a tick bite rather than a bite because it, through its oral appliance (the rostrum), clings to the skin of its host to feed on its blood. Its development cycle goes through three stages: the larva, the nymph, and the adult form. Tick can bite at each of these stages because only a blood meal allows him to pass to another stage. When they reach adulthood, the females are the only ones to bite. They are mainly found about animals, which is why they become carriers of bacteria. By biting an animal infected with the Lyme borreliosis bacteria for example, they then become sick. This is how they then contaminate a human being settling under the skin.
Where do ticks live?
These little parasites live in wooded areas and wet like dead leaf mats or brushwood, for example. They are also present in meadows, in tall grass, gardens, parks, etc. Note that ticks hibernate in winter, so it is during the period March to October that you have to be the most vigilant.
How to prevent a tick bite?
After a walk in the forest or a hike in a wooded, vegetated, brushy area and more particularly in a wet area, it is important to carry out a careful inspection of your child's entire body. Be careful because the ticks are very small, the nymph for example, only measures between 1 to 3 mm. First, look carefully at your child's uncovered areas (neck, arms, ankles, etc.), then widen to the rest of the body using your hand.
- armpits
- knee folds
- genitals
- navel
- the ear canals
- scalp
Ticks particularly like areas where the skin is the thinnest, so be sure to examine all of these parts. The examination of your body is also essential and it is also an opportunity to teach your child the reflex to inspect his body after a field trip. Once taken, this habit will follow him all his life and will allow him to reduce the risks of complications.
The best solution to prevent a tick bite is of course cover yourself well when you go out for a walk in the areas where they live. If the outside temperature is too high, however, it can be difficult to cover your child from head to toe. Then choose skin repellents to apply on your child's skin before going on a walk, type Insect Screen. However, for infants under 30 months of age, use is limited, and the advice of your pediatrician is preferable.
It is also possible to get bitten in his garden, so as soon as the sunny days come up, a little mower can save you a lot of inconvenience!
How to recognize a tick bite?
Do you notice a small black spot that does not go away when you rub? It is indeed a tick. As you get closer, you can even see his abdomen and legswith his head buried under the skin to reach the small blood vessels. The bite of a tick in itself does not cause pain but can cause itching within hours.
How to proceed in the event of a bite?
If you find a tick on your child's body, this must be removed as soon as possible. Indeed, the risk of transmission of the bacteria Borrelia Burgdorferi responsible for Lyme disease, depends on the rate of infestation of the tick but also on the time during which it remained attached to the skin of its host. To achieve this, use a flat pliers, non-cutting tweezers, or specific pliers such as "tick pulls". Ideally, it is best to remove the tick by turning (as if you were " unscrew ") not by shooting, which could result in leaving your head in it. If this happens, go to the pharmacy to ask for advice.
It is strongly advised not to remove the tick manually or by crushing and even less using various disinfectants. Extraction methods based on ether, alcohol, petroleum or even to ugly cigarette heat were certainly widespread in the days of our ancestors but they are nonetheless dangerous. Why ? Because they involve a risk of regurgitation of the tick which could then let the bacteria spread under the skin.
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You must of course disinfect the bitten area but only after removal of the tick, with modified alcohol or an antiseptic based on chlorhexidine, hexamidine or povidone iodine. A bath or shower will have no effect on a fixed tick.
When to consult a doctor ?
If your child is less than 8 years old and has been bitten by one or more ticks, a consultation with a doctor is strongly recommended. The implantation time of the parasite is also decisive. In France, there is a risk from the first hours after the bite, which increases over time. Beyond 36 hours, we can consider that there is a fort contamination risk rate which becomes considerable from 48 hours. If you discovered the tick a day or two after a walk in the forest and you doubt the duration of its presence, also consult a doctor quickly, especially if the tick is full of blood.
After examination and according to the symptoms that you present, your attending physician will judge whether or not to prescribe an antibiotic treatment against the bacteria Borrelia Burgdorferi, responsible for Lyme disease.