If the bitten person is eight years or older, has had a black legged tick on them for 36 hours or more, and it has been 72 hours or less since the tick has been removed, we can prescribe a one-time dose of Doxycycline. This is where it gets a little more complicated. So, I meet criteria for antibiotic prophylaxis…what does that mean? We do not test ticks for Lyme disease because even if the tick has it, we do not know if it passed the disease on to the person it bit. That’s because here in the Northeast more than 20 percent of ticks (more than 1 in 5) are infected with Borrelia burgdorferi, the germ that causes Lyme disease. This means giving an antibiotic to try to prevent the bitten person from developing Lyme disease. or more) we may recommend antibiotic prophylaxis. If it has been 72 hours (three days) or less, the tick is a Black Legged tick, and it has been attached for 36 hours or more (some people may use 24 hr. When you see or talk with your health care provider about a tick bite, they will need to know how long it has been since the tick was removed. If parts of the tick’s mouth remain attached, do not go after it! The human body will naturally rid it with time. Clean the skin once the tick has been removed. Do not squeeze, crush, or injure the body of the tick. Pull straight up with steady pressure (or follow tick tool directions). Grab the tick as close to the bitten skin as possible. Remove the tick with tweezers or a tick tool. Ticks need to eat to pass on Lyme disease. This means the tick has had a blood meal. To pass on Lyme disease, the tick will typically be engorged (swollen). Lyme disease is rarely passed on during the first 48 hours (two days) a tick is attached. To help with this, think about times when you may have been in areas where ticks are often found for example, in the woods in or around tall grass. It can be difficult to determine how long a tick has been attached. If it’s a black legged tick, your health care provider will want to know if it has been attached to the person and for how long. If a tick is found on a human or pet, it’s important to identify the type of tick to know if the person or pet is at risk for Lyme disease. Lyme disease is spread through the bites of nymph or adult Deer ticks, also known as “Black Legged” ticks. So you have a tick bite, what type of tick is it?
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