Ironically, he was camping in the same place I was at when I contracted it 10 years ago. But he had no EM rash.
I know many people never get the rash, but really, is it necessary to go to the doctor and get antibiotics for every tick bite? Though I doubt they would give it to him anyway without the EM or a positive test.
What makes me mad is that I lectured both my parents before they went camping to wear bug spray, tuck their pants into their shoes, etc.
Did they listen? Noooo....My mom said she used it a few times, my dad not at all.
I even told my mom that going camping without taking preventative measures against tick bites is as risky as picking up a stranger at a bar and having sex with him without a condom!
So should he do anything? He didn't save the tick and I don't know if he pulled it out properly.
Posted by Starfall (Member # 26795) on :
Of course, mainstream doctors will say we're crazy and overreacting, but I would say that yes, he should probably at least see a doctor and try to get abx even without a rash.
At the very least, if he sees a doctor now, if he starts showing symptoms later, then he's got a record of having sought treatment for it. Not that that helps when you're suffering from chronic lyme.
Cold he go to an urgent care place that may take it more seriously and at least give him some abx?
Posted by bcb1200 (Member # 25745) on :
I never had the rash. Get him on some meds ASAP!!!! DO NOT WAIT.
Posted by 5vforest (Member # 29365) on :
How long was it attached, and can you find out how he pulled it out?
It might be worth getting him some abx just in case; dealing with a month or two of unnecessary Doxy is a lot better than dealing with chronic symptoms.
Posted by jenniferk32 (Member # 30718) on :
Well he's going to the V.A. today for a regular appointment and he's going to bring it up. Hopefully the doctor will give him some antibiotics. If not my dad will probably just forget about it unless he has symptoms, he thinks he's Mr. indestructible tough guy.
Posted by BackinStOlaf (Member # 23725) on :
Knowing what I know now..it's worth is to take a few months of doxy JUST IN CASE
Posted by jadams (Member # 28016) on :
Yikes, My nephew just had a tick pulled from him. No rash, just a little scab and he had the tick tested. Sure enough, it was a carrier of lyme disease.
Posted by annier1071 (Member # 28977) on :
Hubby had a nymph surgically removed it was so embedded after an hour upstate. He was put on doxy for 2 months by my GP since he has seen what lyme did to me.
This is one of at least 50 ticks bites he has had over his lifetime and he did have lyme years ago but it cleared up with doxy also. He is IGG positive and that will never clear up but he has no symptoms of lyme at all . I think doxy right away is worth it!!
Posted by bashibazouks (Member # 28286) on :
It doesn't matter how long it was attached!!
In the words of Walter Reed tick expert Richard Robbins: "Mechanically, there is nothing to prevent pathogen transmission at the first moment of contact."
THINK ABOUT IT: Mosquitoes, fleas, etc. can transmit pathogens in a bite that lasts just a second. Why would ticks be any different? We know that the spirochetes are found in their salivary glands. So any contact, however brief, is too long!
Also consider: when you find an attached tick, you can't ever really know how long it was there. If you knew it was there earlier, you would have removed it already!
quote:Originally posted by 5vforest: How long was it attached, and can you find out how he pulled it out?
It might be worth getting him some abx just in case; dealing with a month or two of unnecessary Doxy is a lot better than dealing with chronic symptoms.
Most people do not have an EM rash, and many go on to develop chronic Lyme.
In my case, no EM rash, and first symptoms showed up 10 weeks later.
So my advice is to treat a known tick bite. It's much easier to take preventive antibiotics for 6-8 weeks than it is to deal with a lifetime of chronic health struggle!
Usually, regular doctors are not educated about a sufficient level of antibiotics for prevention of Lyme. Since I am in California, I will be pming you about doctors.