Tick season is in full swing. Even with the use of repellents, the risk of encountering these dangerous insects remains high — not only in forests but also within city limits. When bitten by a tick, it is crucial to remove it correctly and avoid mistakes that could cost you your health, warned general practitioner Marina Berezhnaya in an interview.
Among the most dangerous tick removal methods, the expert highlights:
– Pouring oil, alcohol, or hairspray on the tick. This common advice should never be used. Before suffocating, the tick may inject more infected saliva into the wound, increasing the risk of infection.
– Yanking the tick out. In this case, the insect’s head may remain in the skin, meaning the risk of infection is not reduced.
– Squeezing with fingers. Pressing the tick leads to greater saliva secretion, which can come into contact with mucous membranes and skin, also posing a danger.
Ideally, when bitten by a tick, you should seek medical attention as soon as possible so that a specialist can properly remove the insect and send it for analysis. If that is not an option, the doctor recommends grasping the tick as close to the skin as possible with tweezers, a lasso, or a special tick removal tool, and removing it with smooth twisting motions. After removal, disinfect the wound with an antiseptic (iodine, betadine, brilliant green, chlorhexidine, miramistin), and place the tick in a clean test tube or jar to take to a laboratory within the first two days after the bite.
Berezhnaya emphasized that you must consult a specialist if, within 3–30 days after the bite, you experience any of the following symptoms: redness around the bite site, fever, body aches, or headache.
