Getting Rid of a Tick
Simply remove the tick as soon as you notice it attached to your skin. Although there are many tick removal tools on the market, a simple pair of fine-tipped tweezers works just as well.
How to Get Rid of a Tick
- Take hold of the tick as closely to the skin's surface as you can using clean, fine-tipped tweezers.
- Apply consistent, even pressure as you pull up. Avoid twisting or jerking the tick because doing so could result in the mouthparts breaking off and staying in the skin. If this occurs, use tweezers to remove the mouthpieces. If using tweezers to remove the mouth is difficult, leave it alone and allow the skin to heal.
- Use rubbing alcohol or soap and water to thoroughly clean the bite site and your hands after the tick has been removed.
- Never use your fingers to squash a tick. Dispose of a live tick by:
- Putting it in alcohol,
- Placing it in a sealed bag or container,
- Wrapping it tightly in tape, or
- Flushing it down the toilet.
Follow-up
Consult your doctor if you experience a rash or fever within a few weeks of tick removal:
- Inform the doctor about the tick bite you just had.
- When the biting took place.
- Where the tick was most likely picked up by you.
Avoid using folk remedies like heating the tick to make it fall off the skin or "painting" it with petroleum jelly or nail polish. Instead of waiting for the tick to detach, try to get rid of it as soon as you can.
The Examination of Ticks
When a tick is removed, some people question if they ought to get it examined for signs of infection. Although some for-profit organizations provide testing, in general this is not advised because:
- Tick testing facilities are exempt from the strict quality control requirements that apply to clinical diagnostic laboratories. Decisions regarding treatment should not be based on the results of tick testing.
- Positive tests indicating the tick was contaminated with a disease-causing organism may not always indicate that you have contracted the illness.
- Negative outcomes may result on overconfidence. It's possible that an infected tick from a different species bit you without your knowledge.
- Before the results of the tick test are available, you will most likely start to experience symptoms if you have been affected. If you do get sick, you shouldn't wait to start the right treatment until the results of a tick test are in.
You might want to learn how to recognize different ticks, though. Different ticks, which carry various diseases, can be found throughout the nation.
