There is a rather widespread misconception amongst people who had suffered a tick bite at one point or the other; these guys are quick to conclude that they have Lyme disease. While there is an actual chance of that happening, how many of these assumptions turn out to be eventually correct?
There is a whole lot of misinformation about tick bites and Lyme disease. So do you have any concerns related to the subject? If you do, all you need to do is stay put and get the facts here.
Tick bite & Lyme
How can you differentiate between a mere tick bite and Lyme disease? If you know the difference, you’d be a lot calmer when you have any of such encounters. Certain things can help you determine if what you are having is just an ordinary tick bite or if it has graduated to Lyme disease. Here are a couple of noteworthy things:
- A red bump characterizes tick bites after a week or two.
- These red bumps are typically found around the knee or below the belt area.
- Tick bites skin reactions are usually between one and two inches in size.
- For tick bites, the redness does not go beyond the original area
- These red spots only last for days or a week.
In stark contrast,
- Lyme disease rash is usually oval.
- Lyme rash is within 6 to 8 inches in diameter. They are more conspicuous than tick bite reactions.
- They are uniformly red.
- Lyme rash looks a lot more like spider bites.
Do all tick bites result in Lyme disease?
A careful read of the previous sub heading tells you that tick bite reactions and skins reactions due to Lyme disease are two different things. However, there is a connection between them because a tick bite can lead to Lyme disease. So does this mean whoever suffers a tick bite automatically has Lyme disease? The answer is an emphatic NO.
A particular species of bacteria are responsible for Lyme disease. There are four types of this Lyme-causing bacteria. They are Borrelia Mayonii, Borrelia burdorferi, Borrelia garinii and Borrelia afzelii bacteria. However, plenty of research has shown that Lyme disease is mostly caused when a black-legged tick bites someone; they are also known as the deer tick. So your chances of getting the disease are more if you stay in high wooded or grassy areas where these ticks are found.
What this means is that not all tick bites give rise to Lyme disease. Instead, only infected tick bites can transmit the bacteria. Next up, is how to know if you are about to go down with Lyme disease.
Symptoms of Lyme disease
Just like you may already know, Lyme disease also starts as an ordinary tick bite. But time is one factor that explains better if a tick bite has evolved into Lyme disease. Let us break things down at this point.
Lyme disease has different symptoms at the various stages.
At the early stage:
- Within 3 – 30 days, the rash spreads to about 6 – 8 inches in diameter. The shape is usually that of a bull’s eye. For some, they have the rash signs in more than one part of their body.
- There may equally be flu-like symptoms that go with the rash: fatigue, chill, fever, headache, and body aches.
At the later stage:
- Erythema migrans, being one of the most notable features of Lyme disease, may begin to appear in other parts of your body.
- You’ll start experiencing severe pains around your knee joints; you can even experience these pains on different knees at various intervals.
- It can finally escalate to partial paralysis of a part of your face, inflammation of membranes around the brain or meningitis, numbness in your knees and possibly weakened muscle movement.
Other symptoms that can be experienced outside the ones mentioned above are Vomiting and Nausea; a diffused pattern of rash, unlike the bull’s eye pattern.
Some other less severe signs to watch out for could be:
- Erratic heart beats. These symptoms last typically for a short time like 7days max.
- Inflammation of the eye
- Inflammation of the liver also known as hepatitis
- Plus, severe fatigue
What are your chances of having Lyme disease?
Numerous studies have shown that only a handful of black-legged tick bites result in Lyme disease. This probability is possible because the longer you let the tick stick to your skin, the higher your chance of coming down with the disease. You are unlikely to have the disease if the tick only clung to your skin for less than 48 hrs. So you are likely to come in contact with the black-legged tick and not get any Lyme infection.
Conclusion
If you have a tick bite, and you suspect it could lead to Lyme disease because of the above symptoms, it is good you visit your health adviser. Lyme disease treatments are effective when they are started on time.
References
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/lyme-disease/symptoms-causes/syc-20374651
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