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View Full Version : 3/20 Got Ambushed this Weekend


Archangel
05-09-2005, 08:18
Hey fellas, it's important that you check your whole body for ticks from this weekend. I found like six of them on me. If you find any, take care of it immediately.

Here are some articles:

http://www.biosci.ohio-state.edu/~acarolog/tickgone.htm

http://www.aafp.org/afp/20020815/643.html

Tick Removal

Many methods of tick removal that have been reported in the literature have proved to be unsatisfactory in controlled studies. Some methods may even cause harm by inducing the tick to salivate and regurgitate into the host. Ticks are best removed as soon as possible, because the risk of disease transmission increases significantly after 24 hours of attachment. The use of a blunt, medium-tipped, angled forceps offers the best results. Following tick removal, the bite area should be inspected carefully for any retained mouthparts, which should be excised. The area is then cleaned with antiseptic solution, and the patient is instructed to monitor for signs of local or systemic illness. Routine antibiotic prophylaxis following tick removal generally is not indicated but may be considered in pregnant patients or in areas endemic to tick-borne disease.

Because tick bites are nearly painless, a tick may not be noticed until after it is attached. It is important to remove the tick from the host as soon as possible after it is discovered. Animal and human studies have shown that the risk of Lyme disease transmission increases significantly after 24 hours of attachment and is even higher after more than 48 hours.

In addition to timely removal, it is important to remove the tick completely, including the mouthpart and the cement the tick has secreted to secure attachment. Improper tick removal may cause mouthparts to break off in the skin, possibly leading to infection or granuloma formation.7 Twisting off the head should be avoided, because this may cause the tick's potentially infectious body fluids to escape.

Ticks should never be handled with bare hands and should be disposed of with hazardous waste or preserved in alcohol if identification is needed.

Few methods for tick removal that have been reported in the literature have scientific support. Some methods that are not recommended (Table 1) include applying a hot match or nail to the tick body; covering the tick with petroleum jelly, nail polish, alcohol or gasoline; using injected or topical lidocaine (Xylocaine); or passing a suture needle through the tick.8-15 Although there is conflicting evidence as to whether the removal technique influences infection rates,6,10,16 these methods may induce the tick to salivate and regurgitate into the attachment site, theoretically increasing the risk of infection.8,11

Commercially available tick-removal devices include the Sawyer Tick Pliers (B&A Products, Bunch, Okla.), Pro-Tick Remedy (SCS Limited, Stony Point, N.Y.) and Ticked Off (Ticked Off Inc., Dover, N.H.). Although one study17 found that the Pro-Tick Remedy and Ticked Off devices left mouthparts in the skin less often, all three devices listed above were recommended over tweezers for tick removal. Another study2 recommended the Ticked Off device but did not compare it with other devices. There are other commercially available tick-removal devices, but no studies have evaluated their usefulness.

The most commonly recommended and successful tick-removal method is manual extraction of the tick.7,8,10,11,16,18-21 [Reference 16--Evidence level B, nonrandomized study] A blunt, medium-tipped, angled forceps offers the best results, using the method shown in Figure 1

http://www.aafp.org/afp/20020815/643_f1a.jpg

http://www.aafp.org/afp/20020815/643_f1b.jpg

After a tick is removed, an antiseptic solution is applied to the attachment site, and patients should be educated about the signs and symptoms of local and systemic illness. There is conflicting evidence as to the need for routine antibiotic prophylaxis.22-24 Although a discussion of evidence is beyond the scope of this article, most experts, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Infectious Diseases Society of America, do not recommend routine antibiotic prophylaxis.25,26 [Reference 26--Evidence level C, expert opinion] However, antibiotic use may be considered in patients who are deemed high-risk, in pregnant patients, and in patients living in areas endemic to tick-borne disease.

Surgicalcric
05-09-2005, 09:09
You guys in the prone alot this weekend working on SUT or just out doing the land nav thing...

Crip

Archangel
05-09-2005, 09:31
You guys in the prone alot this weekend working on SUT or just out doing the land nav thing...

Crip
We did a lot of land nav as usual. It's getting warmer now & I expect it to get even worst in the next few months (especially during AT).

KolB
05-09-2005, 22:22
It's strange. Some people seem to be more attractive to ticks than others. I remember several times in SUT phase checking myself and finding at the most a couple ticks. There were others less fortunate however that seemed to have tick patrol bases set up in their navel and/or 4th point regions pretty consistently.

Any medical explanations out there which would cover this?

Prester John
05-10-2005, 07:36
I spent the weekend putting out beacons for night nav, and I seemed to have more ticks than most of the guys rucking the points. I had 26 at last count. The guys with me only had two between them. I too would like to know what makes a person attractive to them.

I read further down in Medical. Ignore my already answered questions.

QRQ 30
05-10-2005, 08:21
There are certain smells/ chemicals emitted by the body which can attract or repel ticks. Certain foods are said to work but I can't recall which right now. I think a high blood alcohol content may help :D or at teast anesthetize. :p I am sure this is the basis for various pills that work on dogs. They're about $10 a pill but my dogs never have fleas or ticks. I wonder if the military has developed or is working on such a rermedy.

BTW: If you scratch it more than once you are playing. :D

The Reaper
05-10-2005, 08:37
Garlic pills seem to work to repel some insects, but again, tactical considerations would prevail.

Bug bites yield to bullet wounds.

TR

Brother Rat
05-10-2005, 09:48
I have been told that eating MRE match heads will keep them off you.

The Reaper
05-10-2005, 09:54
I have been told that eating MRE match heads will keep them off you.

The sulfur is okay, but I do not think I would want all of the other chemicals in a match head.

TR

Neo
05-11-2005, 08:46
I was up in east Washington these past couple of weeks and the ticks up there were terrible too, and it was cold out. My PJ trainee buddy was covered in them.

The Reaper
05-11-2005, 09:05
I was up in east Washington these past couple of weeks and the ticks up there were terrible too, and it was cold out. My PJ trainee buddy was covered in them.

Neo:

You sure waited a while to speak up.

Nice lurking.

TR

Neo
05-11-2005, 09:47
TR,

Gotta get my post count up sometime, best way to do it is to talk about nasty critters. ;)

Have a good one.
Cheers

12B4S
05-12-2005, 00:45
Nothing gets by TR. ;) Have to agree Neo. A helluva lurking job.

It seems, I may one of those folks that ticks, chiggers and such do not like.
Ever since I was a kid, I've been walking, crawling, laying, sleeping, ect in the woods on a couple continents. Others got them, they just didn't like me.
Now perhaps a few times were due to an elevated blood alcohol count, but that would have been after I was out. :D

Neo
05-12-2005, 06:31
Ticks might not like me, but them damn mosquitos. I was in Africa about a month back, I couldn't go anywhere w/o pouring on the 100% DEET.
Gotta love it. :cool:

Griv
05-19-2005, 11:36
Panty Hose. never tested it myself, but if they are really that severe, may be something worth testing out. -griv