Lyme Disease can cause AF & much more!

[secondtry]

Hi Guys, just a short timely message to check for tics if you have been outside in long grass or heathland. LD can trigger an irregular heart beat. The following is the best I've read in a while heartmdinstitute.com/health...

[BobD Volunteer]

It can also cause valve problems due to fungal growth on valves and change personalities. My late brother in law got a tick where you really wouldn't want whilst walking in Greece and was really odd for a couple of years. Later he had to have a carbon fibre aortic valve due to Lymes which is how they learned he'd had it. Apparently sticking a lighted cigarette up its bum is not the approved way to remove them.

[secondtry in reply to BobD]

Only way to remove them is avoid a knee jerk reaction to rip them off and with the right tool (or tweezers) slowly pull and twist until they find it too much pressure and pull their locked on talons back. A lighted cigarette or alcohol etc avoid as it can make them sick into your blood stream. I have had a number of them working on my smallholding including two 'where you really wouldn't want' and with one ended up with a nurse in A&E using a scalpel to get out a leg that got left behind.....suffice to say we quickly came to the decision to leave it in and let it dissolve naturally! PS The risk is there in gardens as well, particularly with No Mow May.

[BobD Volunteer in reply to secondtry]

Yes I knew that after what happened to BIL. Cats have come home with them but seldom stay on long as they have spot-on treatment.

[pusillanimous in reply to secondtry]

We have a problem with ticks in South Africa - I used to take my dog tracking in the bush (part of training for working trials competition) and we would both pick up ticks - when you remove them make sure remove the head that is buried in your skin - tweezers are best. We do not seem to get Lyme disease, but 'Tick Bite fever" different species of ticks I think and a certain type fortunately rare and found mostly in the Northern parts of the country, that cause Congo fever.( I see in the news there is an outbreak of Congo fever in Iran and Iraq at present) Tick bite fever is unpleasant it affects the liver and has a jaundice like effect, Tetracycline is usually prescribed for it. The condition in dogs is Biliary Fever, or Erlichia, and again affects the liver and if not treated at once causes anaemia and the dog needs a transfusion, if treated early the vet prescribes Doxycycline. So we always check our dogs, not only for ticks but for pale gums if the dog seems unwell, and this despite all the tick repellents there are available!

[Kent2007]

An important factor is the length of time they are on you. The shorter, the better. If you do feel ill afterwards, it can be hard to get a diagnosis, especially with covid producing a dizzying array of symptoms. Onset of symptoms does not occur for some days/weeks. Absence of the 'bull's eye' rash around the bite is not a guarantee of freedom from infection. I got Lyme some years ago, no rash but the red mark left by the bite didn't reduce in size or or itchiness. Symptoms started after about 2 weeks. However, the main effect was on my heart. Any sort of stress - even a pee or hot shower - would provoke my AF. Lyme was diagnosed early and antibiotics prescribed. The symptoms disappeared in literally about 2 hours!

[secondtry in reply to Kent2007]

Great points. I would also add don't rely on your GP diagnosing even with a 'bull's eye'. One GP told me it was some stomach issue (I think she said) despite my mentioning my suspicions and gave me a scrip for it, which I ignored and revisited another GP in the practice to get the Doxycycline anti-biotic.

[Kent2007 in reply to secondtry]

Not unusual, I fear. I had to self-diagnose, later confirmed by specific blood test. Fortunately, I live close to the English Lake District and the GP practices around here are now attuned to the possibility of Lyme and tend to take a precautionary approach - prescribe antibiotics (OK, not necesarily good for antibiotic resistance). It's less likely to be diagnosed in (say) London or Birmingham.

[irene75359]

We rescued a stray dog in Spain that had been wandering locally for a couple of years. It had a very long, extremely matted coat, and we worked with him on a table, cutting off the huge mats and deticking him. We always have a tick removing tool and I became expert at detaching them in seconds and dropping them into a pail of water. Awful things, I am ultra careful, here in the UK too as we often go walking in Richmond Park where deer freely wander. We have a young friend who still suffers the serious effects of an untreated tick bite.

[Ppiman]

On a holiday to Somerset, I came back with ticks attached more than once. It's so annoying as we avoided long grass for that very reason. recall my poor son once as a toddler having them in all sorts of places. I think Lyme disease is a real risk and care needs to be taken. I had symptoms once that were worrying but two blood tests came back negative.

Steve

[beach_bum]

Yes indeed it’s tick season! We have 2 labs, and I take them for daily hikes through the forest, fields and streams every morning, and although the dogs are protected with tick medication, I am not, so it’s shower/inspection time for all of us after every hike.Lyme disease is not something you want. It does bizarre things to humans.

[secondtry in reply to beach_bum]

Yep, I work daily on an acre next to our house, which I manage on a 'Nature comes first' basis (e.g. long grass) and I do daily checks and drive the parents of my grandchildren mad with my mantra on every visit 'they must go through the tick station tonight!' Better safe than sorry and I understand the risk is increasing, as if we needed anything else.

[beach_bum]

I remember my parents telling me about the ticks during their childhoods in the UK and Scotland...then they emigrated to Southern Vancouver Island...ticks galore, os they were used to them lol. I retired on the right coast (Nova Scotia) and they are abundant here as well. During tick season it just becomes a daily ritual if you find yourself walking through tall grass or the woods...check check check...becomes sort of like a nervous...tic..k 😆

[jeanjeannie50]

I spent all of my childhood and teen years living in the country, we kids roamed everywhere in the countryside, but I never remember any of us or parents getting ticks. Our cat even slept in my bed at night. Perhaps there's something that attracts them to certain people?

Jean

[secondtry in reply to jeanjeannie50]

Hi Jean, I think it is something that has been steadily growing since the 70's and set to become like on the North East of the States where it is much more prevalent. I was brought up on a farm in Yorks and left in 1974 , never had any tic issues. Hope your recuperation is going well.

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to secondtry]

Ah I was away from the countryside in the 70's.

Yes, I'm doing really well, thanks. Have learnt that I mustn't attempt to do anything that requires energy or lifting. I thought I could go out in the garden and snip off some ivy that's growing in the hedge, but the black bag I was using soon became heavy. Think I'm going to have to wait a few more weeks. Walking presents no problems at all. Can't wear a bra at the moment as there are cuts right where it goes in the middle of my chest. If I go out I have to disguise that with a scarf and Gillet, not easy if it's hot weather. Mustn't moan there are lots of people in a far worse condition than me.

Thanks for asking.

Jean

[irene75359 in reply to jeanjeannie50]

Jean, I also have cuts and bruises from my lung ablations and I bought 'bralettes' from Sainsburys and Morrisons, they have a wide soft band under the cup which doesn't dig in at all. In fact they are so comfortable I can see me not ever going back to wearing normal bras!

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to irene75359]

Unfortunately I have two cuts right where a bra fits under the bust. I'm afraid a bra will rub and aggravate them. I have some of those soft bras too from Sainsbury's, will give them another go. Than you for the tip.

Jean

[needlestone]

My sister got both Lyme and Rocky Mountain spotted fever from a tick in Tennessee. A year or so later she was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive kidney cancer. She died about 2 years after getting the tick. She was only 54 when she passed. No family history of kidney cancer. I believe the tick diseases contributed to this, along with the constant antibiotics she was on for them and before the cancer diagnosis.

[secondtry in reply to needlestone]

So sorry to hear that, which has made me determined to be more careful.

[Sustainedvtach270]

Here in the north east US, we spray our legs with a natural tick repellent made with essential oil Nantucket Spider. We also plant garlic and marigold flowers to keep the ticks away. We have a young kid, my wife checks him a lot for ticks. Once he got a tick on his scalp while visiting an amish farm, we had to go to the ER to get it removed.

[secondtry in reply to Sustainedvtach270]

Interesting, we'll be doing the same in the UK soon.