Tick Bites: How to Remove a Tick, When to Call a Doctor, and Prevention

Ticks are small parasites that feed on the blood of people and warm-blooded animals. They can look like insects, but they have eight legs and are related to spiders.

Many kinds live in different parts of the United States. They vary in size and colour — light, reddish brown or dark brown — and some are so small they are hard to see. You can pick them up walking through places where they live, such as tall grass, leaf litter and shrubs.

Why tick bites matter

If you spend time outdoors, or have pets that do, watch out for ticks. Some kinds can pass on germs when they bite. The illness can be mild, or can cause serious, long-lasting health problems. Tickborne diseases include:

• Lyme disease;
• alpha-gal syndrome (a red-meat allergy caused by tick bites);
• babesiosis;
• ehrlichiosis;
• Rocky Mountain spotted fever;
• tularemia.

You may not feel a tick bite, and a tick can stay attached for several days. An infected tick can pass germs on once it starts feeding — but if you find and remove it before it has filled up on blood, infection is less likely.

Removing a tick

Remove an attached tick as soon as you can, with a tick-removal device or fine-tipped tweezers:

1. Grab the tick as close to your skin as possible.
2. Pull upward with steady, even pressure. Do not twist or jerk it; try to remove the whole tick in one piece.
3. If the mouthparts break off in the skin, try to remove them — but if they will not come out easily, leave them.
4. Clean the bite and your hands thoroughly with rubbing alcohol or soap and water.

When to contact a health care provider

Many tickborne diseases share signs and symptoms. The most common are:

• fever;
• chills;
• aches and pains;
• rash.

If any of these appear within several weeks of removing a tick, contact your provider.

Preventing tick bites

• Avoid wooded, brushy and grassy areas, especially in warmer months.
• Use insect repellent containing DEET, picaridin or another repellent registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
• Wear light-coloured protective clothing, and treat clothing and gear with products containing 0.5% permethrin.
• Tuck your trouser legs into your socks and your shirt into your trousers.
• After being outdoors, take off your clothes and check them for ticks, then wash and dry them at high temperatures.
• Check yourself, your children and your pets for ticks every day, and carefully remove any you find.

Sources

• MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine, "Tick Bites." https://medlineplus.gov/tickbites.html
• Rewritten in hubnx's own words.