I just found a tick...what would you do?

[Anonymous]

So anyone who finds a tick on themselves or their child should immediately take a 21-day does of antibiotics? (according to some PP's above)?

I have a 1.5 yr. old who visits her grandparents farm regularly. She hadn't had a tick yet but they are plentiful there.

Just wondering what the general advice is? It sounds like most dr.'s will say watch for symptoms but should we be pushing for the antibiotics? 21-day course?

I've found ticks on myself before but never any that were on me for longer than an hour or so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/08/when-lyme-disease-lasts-and-lasts/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=1


New York Times article.

I think that article was considered pretty bad reporting, by people with Lyme Disease and in the medical community. It is pretty much incorrect that a significant number of people who are treated still go on to have chronic Lyme. There is a very small percentage of people who are treated who develop major issues, but this poorly researched article made it sound like there is still a high risk of developing chronic Lyme even if you catch it early. that's not supported by facts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So anyone who finds a tick on themselves or their child should immediately take a 21-day does of antibiotics? (according to some PP's above)?

I have a 1.5 yr. old who visits her grandparents farm regularly. She hadn't had a tick yet but they are plentiful there.

Just wondering what the general advice is? It sounds like most dr.'s will say watch for symptoms but should we be pushing for the antibiotics? 21-day course?

I've found ticks on myself before but never any that were on me for longer than an hour or so.

Find a doctor who's not hysterical and can see the forest for the trees. Putting a 1.5 year old through 21 days of antibiotics is unnecessary and possibly bordering on negligent. Do that a few times and when she's 4 and has a legitimate need for antibiotics, they will be ineffective.

[Anonymous]

I work in urgent care and our protocol is 6 weeks post exposure to do lab testing if you are symptomatic (joint pain and fatigue most often.) So mark this on your calendar and ignore it for a month or so unless you are feeling bad. Most people who end up with Lymes don't develop a bulls eye, so that's not the be-all of diagnosing.

As far as actually testing the tick, that's rarely done. I don't actually know any units/centers/hospitals that do that. It's not CSI.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When I had Lyme 24 years ago (caught early) they gave me 10 days of antibiotics and that was that (and I had been symptomatic with splitting headache and flu-like symptoms). Maybe that would be enough this early as a prophylactic (as opposed to 21 days).

10:31 .....Please let me know, if you got any other issues in all these 24 years.
My daughter was on 3 weeks antibiotics and all I can hear from people is how lyme is never going away without months or years of treatments. And I want to believe otherwise, I want to believe that she is done with it and I need to hear about some cases at least where this is true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When I had Lyme 24 years ago (caught early) they gave me 10 days of antibiotics and that was that (and I had been symptomatic with splitting headache and flu-like symptoms). Maybe that would be enough this early as a prophylactic (as opposed to 21 days).

10:31 .....Please let me know, if you got any other issues in all these 24 years.
My daughter was on 3 weeks antibiotics and all I can hear from people is how lyme is never going away without months or years of treatments. And I want to believe otherwise, I want to believe that she is done with it and I need to hear about some cases at least where this is true.

PP here. Zero symptoms 24 years later. Zero symptoms after the course of antibiotics.
And I had a positive Lyme test. Granted, it was caught very early, I was tested within a week of symptoms.
I recently saw my old family doctor and thanked him so much for thinking to give me that test all those years ago - it wasn't a common thing back then, it was only starting to be talked about. I am so grateful to him. Are your daughter's symptoms gone?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When I had Lyme 24 years ago (caught early) they gave me 10 days of antibiotics and that was that (and I had been symptomatic with splitting headache and flu-like symptoms). Maybe that would be enough this early as a prophylactic (as opposed to 21 days).

10:31 .....Please let me know, if you got any other issues in all these 24 years.
My daughter was on 3 weeks antibiotics and all I can hear from people is how lyme is never going away without months or years of treatments. And I want to believe otherwise, I want to believe that she is done with it and I need to hear about some cases at least where this is true.

PP, had you found the tick on your DD? I'm the PP who had Lyme years ago and if I get symptoms again I'll assume it's from a new bite, not the old one. I am so paranoid about this because we have deer in our yard constantly.

[Anonymous]

Am I in the minority who feels that people are being hysterical about going to a doctor immediately upon finding a tick? Not all deer ticks carry Lyme. There is a huge problem in this country with over prescription of antibiotics which has led to antibiotic resistant organisms. THAT is something to get hysterical about.

I think the advice from the CDC is sound - note the date of the tick removal and observe for 6 weeks.