Longleaf Wilderness Medicine
  • Home
  • About
    • COVID-19 Updates
    • Staff
    • Employment
    • Policies
    • Scholarships
  • Trainings
    • First Aid for Remote Industry (FARI)
    • Wilderness First Aid
    • Wilderness First Responder
    • Wilderness First Responder Recertification
    • Custom Courses
    • Continuing Education for Program Staff
    • Online Learning >
      • Outdoor First Aid
      • WFR Online Extension Course
      • WFR-Recert
  • Class Schedule
  • BLOG
  • Resources
  • Contact
  • Store

Ticks and tickborne Illness: part 2

5/28/2020

0 Comments

 
In Part 1, we discussed the basic biology of ticks and trends in tickborne illness in the US. In Part 2, we will focus on tick bite prevention and treatment and leave you with some resources for continued learning.

Picture
Prevention Strategies
We spend significant time focusing on prevention during our classes. It’s an essential part of planning any trip to identify the risks that can be prevented, reduced, or managed. It is faulty to assume that accidents, injury,  and illness are an inevitable outcome of travel into the backcountry. This emphasis ensures a better experience, reduces strain on medical systems, and reduces serious negative outcomes that could have been avoided. 

Preventing tick bites is the best way to reduce the chances of acquiring a tickborne illness. Together, four actions work to reduce the risk.

Avoid Tick Habitat: Ticks wait on grasses and plants to crawl onto humans. Avoid traveling through areas with tall grasses and dense or bushy vegetation, if possible. 

Use Physical Barriers: Wear long pants and tuck in your socks and shirt. This ensures that a tick will have a much longer journey before it can reach your skin. Wearing lighter colored clothing will help you spot ticks, but remember that some are very small and may go unnoticed. If possible, use a camp chair, groundsheet, or blanket instead of sitting directly on the ground. 

Use Repellents: Repellents are an effective option, especially when combined with clothing-barriers. Always apply as directed on the product packaging. 

    DEET:  30% or higher. Higher concentrations provide longer-lasting    
    protection.


    Permethrin: is a treatment applied to clothing, shoes, and outdoor
    gear. It is a long-lasting repellent and also kills ticks and biting insects.
    It is not intended for use directly on the skin. 


    Other Effective Repellants: should include EPA-registered active
    ingredient such as picaridin, IR3535, Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus, para-  
    menthane-diol (PMD), or 2-undecanone.


Check Your Body for Ticks:  At least twice a day (every 12 hours), carefully look for ticks everywhere on your body. A mirror may be useful. Easy to miss areas include: hairline, waist and bra line, behind knees, back, belly button, and between the legs. If a shower is available, it may aid in discovering and rinsing off ticks. 

* Also, don’t forget about your pets. They are also susceptible to tickborne illnesses and can bring ticks into your home on their fur. Check your pets regularly for ticks and talk to your vet about effective preventative treatments.

Removing an Embedded Tick 
If you do find a tick attached to your body, don’t panic. Not every tick will be carrying disease (this varies regionally). It takes at least six hours (Rocky Mountain spotted fever), but generally 24-48 hours (other diseases) of attached time for disease transmission. The sooner you find a tick and remove it, the better. 

To remove, use tweezers or a tick removal tool to grasp the tick as close to your skin as possible. Pull away from the skin surface with steady pressure until the tick comes out. If any mouth-parts remain in the skin, you can go after them with the tweezers.  
It is not necessary to save the tick for ‘testing’, but consider trying to identify what type it was. Dispose of the tick and wash your hands and tweezers with soapy water. 
Picture
Picture
Caring for a Tick Bite
Gently wash the area with soapy water. You can apply antibiotic ointment to a bandage and cover the wound. As with any skin injury, it is important to change bandaging regularly and monitor for signs of infection. Be alert for any signs of tickborne illness. These may present up to several weeks after the bite. 
Picture
When to Seek Medical Care
Tickborne illnesses typically present with one or more of the following symptoms within several weeks:
  • Fever or chills
  • Body aches, headache, or joint pain
  • Rash at the bite or elsewhere on the body or poor wound healing
  • Neurological symptoms: facial paralysis, altered mental status, or other nerve problems (less common) 

If you experience any of these symptoms after a tick bite (or suspect you could have been bitten), seek out medical care. It is important to explain to the provider that you suspect a tick bite. Tickborne illnesses are treatable, but early diagnosis and care lead to better outcomes. 
Where to Find More Information:
  • Centers for Disease Control Tick Information Page
  • Access your State Health Department for local information regarding Tickborne Illnesses 
  • For a more in-depth synopsis of tickborne illnesses: Tick-Borne Zoonoses in the United States: Persistent and Emerging Threats to Human Health    

Justin Brewster

When not working, Justin enjoys mountain biking, skiing, paddling whitewater, and chasing big waves on Lake Superior. Having begun his next adventure - Physician Assistant school - he's looking forward to continuing practicing medicine in remote environments, whether that's serving rural communities or on an expedition. ​

0 Comments

Ticks and Tickborne Illness: Part 1

5/20/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
Every spring, the annoying sensation of something crawling up my leg reminds me of a tiny yet ever-present hazard found in the Northern forests. After a furious search for the offender, I quickly remove a tick before it has a chance to embed in my skin. I am now on high-alert because tick season has begun.

While we can all relate to the displeasure of an unwanted creature creeping on our skin, the real hazard presented by ticks is not visible to the naked eye. Ticks are the leading cause of vector-borne disease in the United States because of their capacity to transmit microorganisms that cause illness in humans.

Let’s spend some time reviewing the basics of tick biology, disease transmission, and current disease trends. In part two, we will dive into strategies for prevention, tick removal, and recommendations for when to seek medical care. The goal of these articles is for you to walk away feeling more knowledgable and better prepared for staying safe this season.

Picture
Tick Biology Basics
Ticks have eight legs and and a hard body. They are classified as arachnids within the larger group of organisms known as arthropods (which also includes insects). Tick species rely on the blood of other animals for nutrition, so they are parasites. 

Ticks have several life stages after hatching from an egg: larva, nymph, and adult. Note the tiny size of the larval and nymphal stages (image, right)

During each of these stages, they require one or more blood meals. This lifestyle is essential to understanding how ticks can transmit diseases to humans.
​
When feeding on an animal (e.g., a white-footed mouse), a tick may acquire a disease-causing microorganism. Animals that host disease-causing microorganisms act as “reservoirs” because although they may not experience illness, they effectively pass it on to the tick. Once the tick moves on to feed on a human, it can transmit disease. So in this way, ticks act as an intermediary in the chain of disease transmission between animal reservoirs and humans. Less commonly, female ticks can directly transmit microorganisms to their offspring.

Picture
Diseases Transmitted by Ticks
Tick species known to transmit disease in the United States include the American dog (wood) tick, brown dog tick, Rocky Mountain wood tick, Pacific Coast tick, Gulf Coast tick, Lone Star tick, western black-legged tick, and black-legged tick (deer tick). The black-legged/deer tick (Ixodes scapularis) has the most significant role in disease transmission. In northern latitudes, ticks are generally active from March-November. More temperate regions experience year-round tick activity.

Ticks can transmit bacteria, protozoa, and viruses that cause disease. The type and prevalence vary by region and tick species. The most commonly reported infections are listed below in order of prevalence:
  • Lyme Disease (Bacterial)
  • Anaplasmosis/Ehrlichiosis (Bacterial) 
  • Spotted Fever variants (Bacterial) 
  • Babesiosis (Protozoan)
  • Tularemia (Bacterial) 
  • Powassan Encephalitis (Viral)

Trends in Tickborne Illness and Impacts on Public Health
Year over year, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have identified several consistent trends in tickborne illness:
  • Increased number of overall cases of human disease
  • Greater geographical area of endemic disease transmission
  • New/emerging diseases (E.g., Powassan, Heartland and Bourbon Viruses)
  • New/invasive tick species

The causes behind these observations are not entirely clear, but some likely factors include:
  • Changes in land makeup and management leading to increases in reservoir host species (E.g., white-tail deer, mice, and other rodents)
  • Encroachment of human development in wild areas and an increase in outdoor recreation 
  • Climate change
  • Increased awareness/surveillance by healthcare providers and public health departments

These trends raise the issue that tickborne illnesses represent a significant public health threat both in terms of scale and severity. For example, Lyme disease, the most prevalent tickborne illness, affects an estimated 200,000-400,000 people annually in the US. Issues with diagnosis and reporting make the actual number of cases challenging to measure. Powassan Encephalitis and Rocky Mountain spotted fever, while rare, present a substantial risk of severe illness or death.

In general, theses conditions are challenging to diagnose. Symptoms may mimic other, more common illnesses and present several weeks after a tick bite. The tick bite itself may have gone unrecognized, and the healthcare provider may not be familiar with tell-tale signs of tickborne illness, especially in non-endemic regions. Lyme disease is easy to treat if discovered early, but a missed diagnosis may result in long-term effects, including permanent cardiac, joint, and neurological damage.

Stay tuned for part two of this article series, where we will talk about the best ways to prevent tick bites, how to remove ticks, and when to seek medical care.

Justin Brewster

When not working, Justin enjoys mountain biking, skiing, paddling whitewater, and chasing big waves on Lake Superior. Having begun his next adventure - Physician Assistant school - he's looking forward to continuing practicing medicine in remote environments, whether that's serving rural communities or on an expedition. ​

0 Comments

    Archives

    December 2020
    November 2020
    August 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    January 2020
    May 2016
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2014
    May 2014

    Categories

    All
    Auto Injector
    Auto-Injector
    Basic Needs
    Covid 19
    Covid-19
    CPR
    Decision Making
    Dehydration
    Environment
    Epinephrine
    EpiPen
    First Aid Kit
    Hydration
    Hyponatremia
    Hypothermia
    Lightning
    Medication
    Nervous System
    Prevention
    Recreation
    Risk
    Stress
    Stress Management
    Temperature
    Training

    RSS Feed

Picture

Contact

Longleaf Wilderness Medicine
PO Box 1616
Sandpoint, ID 83864
(208)274-3596
info@longleafmedical.com

Quick Links

About
Employment
​
Staff Login


Courses

Wilderness First Aid
Wilderness First Responder
WFR Recert
First Aid for Remote Industry
Outdoor First Aid
WFR Remote Extension
Custom Courses
Copyright © 2011-2020  Longleaf Wilderness Medicine 
  • Home
  • About
    • COVID-19 Updates
    • Staff
    • Employment
    • Policies
    • Scholarships
  • Trainings
    • First Aid for Remote Industry (FARI)
    • Wilderness First Aid
    • Wilderness First Responder
    • Wilderness First Responder Recertification
    • Custom Courses
    • Continuing Education for Program Staff
    • Online Learning >
      • Outdoor First Aid
      • WFR Online Extension Course
      • WFR-Recert
  • Class Schedule
  • BLOG
  • Resources
  • Contact
  • Store