Mite bite and its consequences

Mites are one of the most ancient representatives of arthropods on our planet. Today, science knows more than forty thousand species of these insects. But there are only two kinds of a real epidemiological threat on the territory of our country: it is a taiga tick that lives mainly in the Asian part of the country, and a European forest mite. The fact is that these species are carriers of a large number of infections, including serious ones such as encephalitis, typhus, Lyme disease and many others. Therefore, the bite of a tick poses a serious threat to human health and life.

These dangerous arthropods dwell mainly in moderately shaded and quite humid mixed and deciduous forests, in which there is a thick undergrowth. Also, a large cluster of these insects can be observed at the edges, the bottom of forest ravines, in thickets on the banks of rivers and streams. Ticks climb a blade of grass or a twig of a bush and wait patiently for an animal or person to pass by, then they begin to move through the body of the victim, looking for the most suitable place for the bite.

The greatest activity of insects is in spring and early summer. For a person, only adults are a threat, larvae and nymphs can not become a source of infection. In the saliva of arthropods contains a mass of biological substances that have different properties, there are substances with an anesthetic effect, so the tick bite, most often, can not be felt.

To protect yourself from attacks, you need to properly select clothing. For walks in the forest, it is better to choose a suit with a long sleeve and a hood, while the shirt needs to be tucked into trousers, and the pants - into shoes or socks. It is mandatory to use repellents, applying them to the exposed areas of the skin. After a walk, do not be lazy to carefully examine the body, paying special attention to the skin on the neck, behind the auricles, on the bends of the elbows and knees and in the groin area. In these places, the skin is more delicate, so insect parasites most often suck in there.

Where should I go if I bite a tick? If possible, you should immediately go to a medical facility, but if you find a sucking mite away from "civilized" places, you should immediately remove it. The fact is that the longer an insect is on the skin, the greater the risk of infection with tick-borne infection.

It is most convenient to remove the mite with curved tweezers, but in the field, another tool, such as a strong thread, will also come in handy. In no case, you do not need to pull out the sucking specimen, since its proboscis has "burrs" that prevent its extraction. The mites are caught as close to the proboscis (tweezers or a loop of thread) and begin to twist, rotating its body around its axis. As a rule, after two or three turns, the insect can be extracted.

If you acted inaccurately, and the proboscis of the tick remained in the body, you need to wipe the affected area with an alcohol-containing solution and remove a part of the insect with a needle as usual to remove splints.

When removing the tick, you need to be careful not to exert excessive effort, otherwise there is a risk of crushing its body and then the causative agents of tick-borne infections can get into the wound.

After extracting the insect, the tick bite should be treated with iodine or any antiseptic solution. There is no need to apply a bandage to the wound.

The extracted tick should be put in a jar with a tight lid to send it for analysis to the nearest SES service. And if the insect has fallen off or was destroyed, it will be superfluous 10-12 days after the bite to donate blood for analysis for the presence of agents of tick-borne infection. It is not necessary to ignore even a single tick bite, the consequences of such carelessness can be very serious.

The most dangerous infection, carried by arthropods, is tick-borne encephalitis. If there is a possibility of infection, then emergency preventive measures should be taken the first day after the bite. As an antiviral drug in Russia use Yodantipirin (for adults) and Anaferon (for children under 14 years old). But it is better to vaccinate against this dangerous disease in advance.

However, tick-borne encephalitis is not the only infection that can be infected through a tick bite, so if you find this insect on your body, be sure to see a doctor.