The baby was bitten by a tick. A child was bitten by a tick - what does it threaten, what to do immediately after the bite and after removing the tick? Tick-borne encephalitis in children

When relaxing in nature, parents often find an invading bloodsucker, a tick, on a child’s body. The bite of this insect can threaten the child with infection with quite dangerous infections - and borreliosis (Lyme disease).

Ticks are especially active from May to July, but bites can also occur in other spring and summer months. These blood-sucking insects live in grass and bushes, in parks and forest plantations. Children love to play in the grass, where they can get bitten by the "villain". Ticks can be brought into residential premises by pets or on clothes, with collected berries, mushrooms, and bouquets of flowers.

Remedies

To prevent tick bites, it is recommended that a child wear clothes and shoes that would cover all parts of the body as much as possible for a walk or outdoor recreation. In hot summer day putting on a "suit" for a child is also not easy - it threatens to disrupt heat transfer and heat stroke.

Children over 2 years old can be vaccinated against. Before vaccination, the child must be healthy for a month and undergo an examination. In addition, you can use special protective preparations: repellents that repel ticks from children. Means can be used only after 3 years due to their high toxicity. You can buy these drugs in pharmacies.

Repellents are an important part of tick protection.

Repellents for children include: creams "Off-Children", "Efkalat", "Ftalar", aerosol "Medilisik for children from mosquitoes", "Biban-gel", colognes "Evital", "Pihtal", means "Kamarant". Means are applied to open areas of the body and to clothes that are left outside before dressing to dry.

The protective effect of repellents on clothing lasts up to 5 days. At high humidity air or when exposed to rain, the effectiveness of the product is reduced.

Traditional medicine recommends using as a repellent against ticks. essential oils with a pungent odor. They can also be used for small children in the absence of allergies. For this purpose, clove, mint, rosemary, eucalyptus oils are suitable.

You can prepare a mixture of oils (a few drops of each) or use each separately. Oil is treated every 2 hours on exposed areas of the body and the edges of clothing.

Every 20 minutes during rest and after the child returns from a walk, it is necessary to carefully examine the scalp and skin. The bite itself is not felt, which is associated with the release of an anesthetic substance into the wound. Most often, ticks are found on the delicate areas of the child's body (in the groin, on the neck, behind the ears, in the back of the head).

The bite site may be indicated by a slight swelling, redness of the skin area with a black dot inside. It can be somewhat painful, accompanied by itching. When a tick is found, one should not panic, it is necessary to remove the insect as soon as possible in order to prevent possible infection of the child.

Tactics of parents with a tick bite

  • You can call 03 to find out the address of the emergency room or sanitary and epidemiological station where the tick will be removed.
  • You can remove it yourself. To do this, you must first prepare some kind of antiseptic (, alcohol or others), any container with a lid, cotton balls, some tweezers, strong threads.

Before starting the extraction, it is necessary to treat the bite site with an antiseptic solution. In the pharmacy, you can pre-purchase a special device (anti-tick, trix, tick nipper) to remove ticks in the form of small tweezers. But you can use any other tweezers, pre-treated with alcohol.

With tweezers, you need to carefully grab the body of the tick and remove it, making rotational movements counterclockwise. Apply force, squeeze the insect should not be, so as not to infect the wound when crushing the torso.

In the absence of tweezers, you need to take a strong thread and tie it on the body of the insect closer to the proboscis with a knot near the skin. Then rotate the ends of the thread like a propeller, or carefully remove the tick with swinging movements and place it in a jar with a lid.

If the insect is not completely removed, the remaining parts of it from the skin should be removed with a sterile needle, as a splinter is removed. After removal, the wound is treated with alcohol (iodine), hands are washed thoroughly and also treated with alcohol.

Craftsmen adapted a disposable sterile syringe to remove the tick, carefully cutting off its top. The syringe must be firmly attached to the bite site and gently pull the piston up, removing the insect.

Do not lubricate the bite site with oil or kerosene: without air access, the tick will release the infected fluid into the wound - the risk of infection will increase.

  • The jar with the tick should be delivered to the sanitary and epidemiological station for examination.
  • If a tick infestation is detected or if the area is unfavorable for tick-borne encephalitis, the child is given emergency prophylaxis: an anti-tick immunoglobulin is administered as prescribed by the pediatrician (no later than 96 hours from the moment of the bite). The disadvantage of this drug is often occurring allergic reactions. Prevention is not carried out if the child is vaccinated against tick-borne encephalitis.
  • For the purpose of prevention, pediatricians can prescribe (Viferon, Anaferon for children under 14 years of age or Yodantipyrin for children after 14 years of age). Other antiviral drugs can also be used (Cycloferon, Arbidol, Remantadin). They are used from the first day of the bite.
  • There is currently no vaccine against borreliosis. To prevent this disease, after receiving the result of a tick test, a doctor may prescribe antibiotics.
  • To fully verify that there is no danger after a tick bite, you can examine the child: in an infectious diseases hospital or in a virological laboratory, donate blood for antibodies to causative agents of borreliosis and tick-borne encephalitis 2-3 weeks after the bite.
  • If you experience any symptoms of the disease (, temperature, muscle pain, rashes, etc.), you should immediately consult a doctor.

Summary for parents

It is easier to prevent the penetration of the tick into the skin of the child. If, nevertheless, a tick is found, then it is better to go to the hospital to remove it, especially in a small child. When removing yourself, you must follow all the above rules for removing a tick.

TV channel "Belarus 1", the program "Children's Doctor", the theme of the release is "What to do if a child is bitten by a tick?":

Sending an insect for research should not be neglected. It is not the bite itself that is dangerous, but the infections that the tick can “reward” the child with. If necessary, a preventive course of treatment should be carried out as prescribed by the pediatrician.

Video on how to properly remove a tick with a thread:

Pediatrician E. O. Komarovsky talks about what to do if bitten by a tick:

Ekaterina Morozova


Reading time: 13 minutes

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In 2015, 100,000 children in the Russian Federation were affected by ticks, of which 255 were infected with tick-borne encephalitis.

The article will discuss what diseases can be transmitted through the bites of these insects and how parents should act if the child is bitten by a tick.

First aid for a tick bite: what to do immediately after a bite to prevent infection with dangerous diseases?

It is impossible to immediately determine that the tick has stuck to the body, because, digging into the skin, it does not cause pain.

Favorite places for sucking ticks are the head, neck area, back, places under the shoulder blades, lower abdomen, inguinal folds, legs. The wound from the bite of this insect is small, and, as a rule, the body of the insect sticks out of it.

The tick is a carrier of deadly diseases, the pathogens of which are located in the salivary glands and intestines of the insect.

How to do it?

1. Protect yourself Rendering emergency care must be carried out with gloves or, in extreme cases, in plastic bags on the hands.
2. Pull the tick out of the body The insect should not be pulled out of the body, but you should try to unscrew it from there.
You can unscrew the stuck insect with the help of special devices, threads, as well as tweezers.
3. Remove the "remains" of the insect (provided that it was not possible to completely unscrew the tick from the wound) It is better to contact the doctors, and not try to pull out the remnants of the tick yourself.
If you still have to remove the remains yourself, then the bite site must be treated with hydrogen peroxide / alcohol, and then the part of the insect remaining in the body should be removed with a sterile needle (it must first be treated with alcohol or ignited on fire), like a splinter.
4. Treat the bite After removing the insect and its remnants, you need to wash your hands and treat the wound with brilliant green / hydrogen peroxide / iodine / other antiseptic.
5. Vaccine administration If the child lives in a disadvantaged area with high performance on infection with encephalitis, then, without waiting for the analysis, it is necessary to administer immunoglobulin to him as soon as possible or give him iodantipyrin (anaferon can be used for young children).
The vaccine is effective if it is administered within the first three days after the bite.
6. Take the tick to the laboratory for analysis The insect removed from the body must be moved to a container and closed with a lid, and cotton wool previously moistened with water should be placed on the bottom of the dish.
The tick must be stored in the refrigerator. A live tick is needed for microscopic diagnostics, and tick remains are suitable for PCR diagnostics.

What can not be done with a tick bite?

  • Do not pull the insect out of the body with bare hands because the risk of infection is high.
  • Don't touch your nose, eyes, mouth immediately after removal from the body of the tick.
  • Do not close the breathing hole of the tick located in the back of the body, oil, glue or other substances. The lack of oxygen awakens aggression in the tick, then it bites harder into the wound and introduces even more “toxins” into the child’s body.
  • You can not squeeze or sharply pull out the tick. In the first case, under pressure, the saliva of the tick can splash onto the skin and also infect it. In the second case, there is a high risk of tearing the insect and getting the infection into the bloodstream.

Answers to the most common questions

  1. What to do if a tick has stuck into a child's head?

If possible, it is better to go to the medical center yourself or call an ambulance, which will take you to where the tick can be removed painlessly and with less risk to the child.

  1. What to do if a tick has bitten a baby?

In this case, you must follow all the rules for first aid, which are described in the table above.

It is advisable that all these manipulations be done by a health worker. This will help to avoid tearing the insect and injecting it into the child's body. more pathogens of dangerous diseases.

  1. The bite site turned blue, swollen, the temperature rose, the child began to cough - what does this indicate and what to do?

Swelling, blueness, temperature may be evidence of a toxic-allergic reaction to a tick bite, encephalitis or borreliosis.

The appearance of a cough in a child can be a non-specific symptom of borreliosis, and swelling, fever - its specific symptoms.

If you suspect this disease, you should immediately consult a doctor!

For this you need to contact:

  1. Ambulance (03).
  2. At SES.
  3. To the emergency room.
  4. In the clinic to the surgeon, infectious disease specialist.

But, if it is not possible to get help from a specialist, then you need to carefully unscrew the tick yourself.

How to get a tick out of a child's body: effective ways

There are several ways to remove a tick:


The child was bitten by an encephalitis tick: symptoms, consequences of infection

What disease can be contracted from an encephalitic tick?

Symptoms

Treatment and consequences

Tick-borne encephalitis Symptoms begin to appear 1-2 weeks after the bite. The disease always has an acute onset, so you can find out the exact day of the onset of the disease.
The disease is accompanied by a feeling of heat, chills, photophobia, pain in the eyes, muscles and bones, as well as headache, drowsiness, vomiting, lethargy or agitation. The child has a reddening of the neck, face, eyes and upper body.
Treatment is carried out exclusively in the hospital.
Treatment includes:
- bed rest;
- the introduction of immunoglobulin;
- dehydration (with tick-borne encephalitis, internal organs and the brain swell, thanks to this procedure, such complications can be prevented);
- detoxification therapy (to reduce intoxication of the body);
- maintaining breathing with humidified oxygen, in difficult cases do artificial ventilation lungs;
- complex therapy (temperature control, antibacterial and antiviral therapy).
Treatment started on time is effective, leads to complete recovery and helps to avoid serious consequences.
Untimely diagnosis, self-treatment can lead to death.
The most common complication after encephalitis is paralysis of the upper limbs (up to 30% of cases). Other complications in the form of paralysis are also possible. various forms, paresis, psychiatric diseases.

A tick infected with borreliosis bit a child: symptoms and consequences of Lyme disease in children

Disease transmitted by the bite of a borreliosis tick

Symptoms of infection

Treatment and consequences of Lyme disease in children

Ixodid tick-borne borreliosis/Lyme disease For the first time, the disease makes itself felt 10-14 days after contact with the tick.
Distinguish between specific and nonspecific symptoms.
Non-specific include: fatigue, headache, fever/chills, muscle and joint pain, dry cough, sore throat, runny nose.
To specific: erythema (redness near the bite site), pinpoint rash, conjunctivitis and inflammation of the lymph nodes.
If the tick is removed within the first 5 hours after being bitten, Lyme disease can be avoided.
Treatment:
- the use of antibiotics (tetracycline);
- for rashes and inflammation of the lymph nodes, amoxicillin is used;
- in case of damage to the joints and heart, penicillin, sumamed are used. Treatment continues for a month.
With timely access to a doctor, the outcome is favorable. With improper treatment, more often self-treatment, late access to a doctor, there is a high risk of disability.

How to protect your child from ticks: prevention measures, vaccinations

When visiting forest park areas, parents and children must:

One of the most common measures to prevent tick-borne encephalitis is vaccination. It includes the introduction of 3 vaccines. Immunity in a child is developed after the second vaccination.

Also, immediately before being sent to the danger zone, you can enter immunoglobulin .

Site site warns: self-medication can harm your child's health! All the tips presented are for information only, they do not replace professional medical care and supervision of a specialist! If you are bitten by a tick, be sure to consult a doctor with your child!

Children need Fresh air, gentle spring sun. Therefore, as soon as the snow cover subsides, mothers with strollers rush to parks and playgrounds to improve their child's health. But, starting from April to June, the beginning of July, a small crumb under a bush, a tree, even in tall grass, is lured by a microscopic "threat" -.

Encephalitic tick after a "bloody meal"

Attention! A tick in a child can be found under the armpits, behind the ears, on the stomach, back, in the groin, on the genitals. But most of all children are bitten by ticks on the head. Therefore, increased attention after a walk in a park or square should be given to the baby's hair.

What to expect after a bite?

Bite bite - strife. After the removal of the bloodsucker, events can develop in several directions.

  • The tick turned out to be "harmless", i.e. not infected. For the child and parents, its removal will end in a slight fright.
  • The place of contact in an allergic baby will turn red, swelling and itching may appear. A slight malaise and a slight chill, which disappears after a while, complement the general toxic-allergic reaction to the bite.
  • The bloodsucker turned out to be a carrier of a dangerous virus (tick-borne encephalitis, Lyme disease, fever, etc.). Each infection has its own characteristics. Basically, this is a sharp jump in body temperature, complaints of headache and back pain, loss of appetite, lethargy, change in color and shape of the bite site, etc.

Carefully monitor the site of the tick bite and the well-being of the child

Attention! Weakening of control over the child's behavior, neglect of protective equipment when going to the forest, as well as ignoring the baby's complaints about feeling unwell can lead to the development of a serious illness, which is dangerous not only for damage to the central nervous system, but also for complete paralysis of the body, as well as the death of the bitten.

What made the child sick?

If the doctor is far away, you need to try to properly remove the tick yourself

Important! Emergency measures must be taken immediately. To do this, after contact is detected, immunoglobulin or iodantipyrin is administered within 24-76 hours. Children under the age of 14 are shown anaferon (for children), immunoglobulin, amoxiclav (in case of infection with borreliosis).

anxiety symptoms

In order not to miss the onset of the disease, you need to know what symptoms signal a child's bite with a tick.

At the initial stage:

  • body temperature rises to 38-39°C;
  • the cervical spine becomes painful;
  • complaints of headaches, sore eyes;
  • disorder of the digestive system.

The course of the disease of moderate and severe form is evidenced, in addition to the listed signs, also by the following:

  • nausea, passing into vomiting;
  • impaired coordination, dizziness up to loss of consciousness;
  • possible paralysis of the limbs, convulsions;
  • a severe form of the course of the disease can be fatal.

If the Lyme virus has entered the body, then the bite site in the form of a round spot 3-4 cm in size becomes inflamed and reddens. These signs last from 1 to 30 days. Only after 15 days or a month, secondary symptoms appear: weight loss, nausea, pain throughout the body. The temperature is kept low. The joints of the extremities, neck and back become inflamed. If the disease is ignored or misdiagnosed, the consequences can be irreversible: disruption of the central nervous system and of cardio-vascular system, arthritis.

In any case, the tick must be taken to the laboratory for analysis.

Emergency measures for treating a child with a tick bite

If there is a clean jar at hand, a medicine box, place a live tick there for further transportation and delivery to the laboratory, where you need to contact immediately after arriving in the village.

Attention! If it is impossible to get emergency professional help, you can place the dishes with the mite covered with a damp cloth in the refrigerator, but give it for research in the next 2 days.

With inaccurate extraction, part of the proboscis or head may remain in the wound. The needle (pin) is treated with the same cologne or vodka, a black dot interspersed from the wound is removed like an ordinary splinter. After extraction, it is imperative to appear to an infectious disease specialist. In the absence of vaccinations, immunoglobulin can be prescribed for the prevention. The younger generation should be monitored for three weeks after the incident. If at this time the first signs of poor health are detected, immediately contact the doctor again.

How to protect a child from illness?

Unfortunately, it is impossible to exclude the full probability of a child being bitten by a tick. However, every parent can take the necessary precautions. Don't neglect vaccinations. If vaccinations against borreliosis do not yet exist, then a child who is already one year old can be vaccinated against tick-borne encephalitis all year round, observing the vaccination calendar.

The children's vaccine is more gentle. In it, the amount of active antigen is 2 times less than in the same preparation for adults.

Attention! A child who has been ill once with encephalitis acquires lifelong immunity to this type of virus, while borreliosis can be re-infected.

Preventive measures of protection consist in the correct selection of clothing that covers the body and head of children as much as possible. Regular visual inspection required skin, heads.

If it is impossible to avoid contact of the child with ticks, then minimize Negative consequences after a bite is quite real. It all depends on you parents!

A tick bite can lead to a number of serious consequences, therefore, it requires urgent measures. Children are more prone to this problem than adults, as they love outdoor games and often neglect safety rules at the peak of activity of such dangerous creatures. It is important to recognize the place of the tick bite in time and carry out a number of mandatory procedures.

What to do if a child is bitten by a tick

If a child is bitten by a tick, it is first of all important to remove it correctly.. Then the affected area should be treated. After this, it is necessary to give the child drugs that will help prevent the occurrence of complications. However, rely only on own forces it is not worth it, you need to consult a doctor in time and pass the necessary tests, since a tick bite can have dangerous consequences.

Most often, ticks wait for their prey in low bushes and grass. First, they are attached to clothing, and only then they can stick to the skin.

Tick ​​- an arthropod from the class of arachnids

How to remove a tick

When capturing a tick with tweezers, it is necessary to fix the tool as close as possible to the head

How to treat the bite site

The place of a tick bite in children can be treated with brilliant green. The wound itself is aggressive alcohol solutions pouring is not recommended, thereby increasing the inflammatory process and pain symptoms. The area around the bite is recommended to be disinfected with Chlorhexidine or Miramistin. You can use iodine, but only to treat the area around the wound.

If the wound increases in size and nothing helps to relieve inflammation, it is recommended to immediately consult a doctor or call an ambulance.

Photo gallery: how to treat the bite site

Zelenka - the best remedy to disinfect the site of a tick bite Iodine can only be applied to the area around the wound
Miramistin can be used to disinfect wound edges

Preparations for emergency prevention

Preparations for emergency prophylaxis do not give a 100% guarantee, therefore, under any circumstances, it is recommended that you take your child to the nearest infectious point. Medications that can help prevent dangerous consequences:

  1. Immunostimulants: Anaferon for children, Interferon, etc. These funds strengthen the body's defenses and increase its resistance.
  2. Antihistamines: Fenistil, Suprastin, etc. Such drugs can get rid of symptoms, which can manifest as itching and burning at the site of the bite.

For the prevention of tick-borne encephalitis in children, the drug Yodantipyrin is used, which has an anti-inflammatory effect and antiviral activity. This medication is used only after consulting a doctor.

Photo gallery: drugs for emergency prevention

Anaferon stimulates the body's defenses
Interferon strengthens the immune system
Fenistil relieves itching and burning

Where to send a tick for analysis

In the diagnostic center, the tick is examined for its ability to infect with encephalitis and borilliosis.

Which doctor to contact and what tests should be taken

First of all, after a tick bite, it is necessary to contact the local pediatrician with the child, who will send him for the necessary laboratory tests. Main methods:

  1. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of blood. Helps to detect the presence of tick-borne encephalitis virus and borilliosis. It should be taken from 11 days after the bite.
  2. Blood test for antibodies to encephalitis. Allows you to detect the virus no earlier than 14 days after the removal of the tick.
  3. Blood test for antibodies to borilliosis. The result will be reliable only a month after the bite. If you donate blood earlier, the antibodies will not be detected.

The most informative research method is PCR, which allows you to identify the virus by the presence of its characteristic DNA.

What symptoms after a tick bite should be alarming

  • increase in body temperature;
  • lethargy during the day;
  • refusal of the child to eat;
  • nausea and vomiting;
  • headache;
  • aches in the joints;
  • discomfort in the muscles;
  • increased irritability.

The minimum incubation period for tick-borne encephalitis is 4 days, so on the first day after the bite, any anxiety symptoms may be missing.

Dr. Komarovsky, when a tick is detected in a child, recommends:

When living in an area where encephalitis progresses, during the season of tick activity, it is recommended to carry out a special vaccination aimed at preventing the development dangerous disease.

Ticks are activated in the spring and summer, the first adults appear when the spring rays warm the ground and thawed patches form. The number of ticks reaches the highest concentration by mid-May and lasts until the end of June, then the number decreases.

How to protect yourself from ticks.

Ticks love shaded and wet areas, so you can encounter them in deciduous and mixed forests with dense grass, in ravines, along the banks of streams and rivers, along paths and paths, in bushes.

You can meet a tick in an urban environment, on a playground and at home. They are brought here by animals, on clothes after visiting the forest or summer cottage, with bouquets of wild flowers, and so on.

Examine the child for the presence of ticks after each country trip, staying in the country, walking on the playground. While in nature, a visual inspection of clothing should be carried out every half hour. Parents should know when to vaccinate their child against tick-borne encephalitis.

What to do if a child is bitten by a tick?

  • First of all, contact the nearest medical center, children's clinic, SES station or emergency room. If you do not know where it is, then you should call 03 and you will be prompted.
  • It is necessary to remove the tick as soon as possible, because the likelihood of infection depends on the time that he spent in a stuck state, and therefore on the amount of virus that has entered the body.

The tick can be a carrier of diseases such as tick-borne encephalitis and borreliosis, these are the main diseases of this carrier. If there are no vaccinations against borreliosis, then infection with tick-borne encephalitis can be protected by vaccination.

When should a child be vaccinated against tick-borne encephalitis?

According to epidemic indications, vaccination is mandatory for children living in rural areas. The rest of the children are vaccinated at the request of the parents. When is it recommended to vaccinate against tick-borne encephalitis in a child:

  • children who go to summer camp;
  • to the village with my grandmother
  • to the cottage during the summer.

The vaccination is given in 2 stages: First (autumn - October, November); The second (spring - March-April, no later than !!!), so that immunity can develop, which is developed 2 weeks after the last vaccination, and revaccination after 3 years. At this time, you can be calm for the health of your baby, and even walks in the forest can not be afraid.

The vaccine is given in the upper arm and, fortunately for your baby, is always painless and well tolerated. When using a domestic vaccine, your child must be older than 4 years, and imported can be used from the age of one.

If for some reason you did not vaccinate your child against encephalitis, and there was contact with a tick, it stuck to your baby, then in this case, emergency prophylaxis and treatment with the child's immunoglobulin against tick-borne encephalitis is carried out, but only if there is laboratory confirmation that the tick is contagious.

This drug (immunoglobulin) is administered intramuscularly only, its dosage is calculated according to the weight of your child: 1 ml of immunoglobulin per 10 kg of the child's body weight, defensive actions medications appear in 24-48 hours and last for about a month. To maintain immunological protection, in case of danger of infection, it is recommended to repeat the administration of the drug after 1 month.

It can also be used before probable contact with tick-borne encephalitis for prevention. The drug is administered, first of all, to unvaccinated children or children who have received an incomplete vaccination course. In case of an increased risk of infection (multiple bites or simultaneous suction of several ticks), immunoglobulin is also administered to vaccinated children (up to 12 years old - 1 ml, from 12 years to 16 - 2 ml, from 16 years old - 3 ml). In case of new contact with ticks, it is possible to re-use the drug 1 month after the first injection. In all cases, the drug is administered no later than 4 days after the tick bite.

Immunoglobulin preparations reduce the effectiveness of the vaccine made, therefore, vaccinations are carried out only 2-3 months after the administration of immunoglobulin.

Tick-borne encephalitis in children.

Tick-borne encephalitis in children is an infection affecting the central and peripheral nervous system.

The causative agent is a virus, wild rodents (chipmunks, mice, hedgehogs) serve as the source of infection, and ticks are carriers of the infection. Ticks retain the pathogen for life, then pass it on to their offspring, thus being an additional reservoir of the virus. Approximately 10% of ticks are carriers of tick-borne encephalitis.

The encephalitis virus intensively affects the large nerve cells of the spinal cord.

The incubation period after a tick bite lasts an average of 10-14 days.

Symptoms of encephalitis in children.

  • The disease begins acutely, the body temperature quickly rises to high numbers (39-40 ° C) and the decrease occurs only after 5-10 days.
  • In the first days of illness, the child complains of severe headaches, photophobia, reddening of the skin of the face, neck and chest, muscle pains appear, sometimes vomiting, blackout of consciousness may occur.
  • Frequent symptom of tick-borne encephalitis in children- this is a developing flaccid paresis and paralysis, especially of the muscles of the neck.
  • After 2-3 weeks, muscle atrophy develops, and unfortunately, some children who have been ill still have flaccid paralysis of the upper limbs of the neck, as well as hands.

After tick-borne encephalitis, children have lifelong immunity, although re-infection with this disease is very rare.

In order to confirm the diagnosis of tick-borne encephalitis, blood or cerebrospinal fluid is taken from children, and a virological test is performed to detect the virus.

Borreliosis in children.

Borreliosis can only be contracted after a tick bite, and its incubation period is 8 to 12 days after the tick bite.

Signs of borreliosis in children

  • There may be signs of nausea, abdominal pain,
  • An increase in temperature and + at the site of the tick bite, reddening appears in the form of a ring, which increases in size and can reach as much as 60 cm. The center of the ring is paler, and this sign may be the only one confirming Borreliosis.
  • The spot can persist without treatment for 2-3 weeks, then disappears, and after 30-45 days the first signs of damage appear. nervous system, heart or joints.

Borrelia enter the body through the saliva of the tick during a bite and multiply there, after which they begin to spread. Therefore, it is necessary, if possible, to take the removed tick for examination to the laboratory at the SES and immediately begin preventive antibiotic treatment (Flemoxin, Doxocycline) until the diagnosis is confirmed.

If left untreated, the disease will begin to progress and may even lead to disability.

There is no vaccine against borreliosis.

How does borreliosis occur in children.

  • This disease occurs in 3 stages. There are situations when Borreleosis begins from the second stage, bypassing the annular erythema, and this stage begins with damage to the nervous system.
  • This is almost always manifested by headache, photophobia, hypersensitivity to stimuli, moderate tension of the occipital muscles, and weakness.
  • The facial nerve is more often affected, namely, paralysis of the facial muscles, the face looks skewed, the eye does not close completely, food spills out of the mouth, but usually there is a two-sided lesion: first one side, then, after a few days, the other.
  • This disease leads to damage to other cranial nerves. There are such things as deterioration of vision, hearing, the development of strabismus and impaired eye movement, in more rare cases, speech is disturbed, involuntary movements, trembling in the arms and legs, and epileptic seizures may appear.