As you spend time outdoors, be aware of ticks. To keep yourself healthy, you should know how to identify ticks, how to avoid them and what to do if you’re bitten. We’ll provide the information you need to protect yourself from ticks while you’re outdoors.
What are ticks?
Ticks are arachnids, in the same class as spiders. They are small parasites that feed on the blood of animals and humans. While most tick bites are harmless, ticks can carry many diseases, including Rocky Mountain spotted fever and Lyme disease.
Tick Identification
Ticks go through four stages in their life cycle: egg, larva, nymph and adult. Tick nymphs and adults are capable of transmitting disease to humans or other animals, including pets.
To recognize a tick, look for:
Size: Ticks vary in size depending on their life stage and species. They can range from as small as a poppy seed to as large as a pea when unfed. While feeding, their bodies expand to fill with blood, making them appear larger.
Color: Ticks come in various colors, including brown, reddish-brown, black or gray.
Body Shape: Like spiders, ticks have 8 legs at the nymph and adult stages. Their bodies are oval-shaped or pear-shaped, and can appear either flat or rounded and swollen, depending on whether they have recently fed. At the front of their body, the tick’s mouthparts are visible (when they are not feeding).
Markings: Different tick species may have distinct patterns or markings on their bodies, such as stripes or spots.
Where Ticks Live
Ticks can be found worldwide, in a variety of habitats. They are typically found on tall grass and other low-growing vegetation. When an animal or person brushes up against a plant, a tick can latch to their host’s fur, hair or clothing and then bite into their skin.
Five species of ticks are known to transmit disease in the United States:
American Dog Tick
In the United States, the American dog tick can be found in the eastern half of the country, as well as some parts of the west coast.
The American dog tick can transmit the following diseases to humans:
Tularemia
Rocky Mountain spotted fever
Lone Star Tick
The lone star tick is present in most parts of eastern United States.
The lone star tick can spread many different diseases:
Alpha-gal syndrome
Bourbon virus disease
Ehrlichiosis
Heartland virus disease
Southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI)
Tularemia
Black-Legged Tick/Deer Tick
The black-legged tick, also known as the deer tick, lives both in the east and the Midwest of the United States.
The black-legged tick can transmit a wide variety of illnesses:
Anaplasmosis
Babesiosis
Borrelia miyamotoi disease
Ehrlichiosis
Lyme disease
Powassan virus disease
Western Black-Legged Tick
The western black-legged tick (not to be confused with the black-legged tick or deer tick above) lives primarily on the west coast of the U.S.
Humans can get the following illnesses from the western black-legged tick:
Anaplasmosis
Babesiosis
Lyme disease
Rocky Mountain Wood Tick
True to its name, the Rocky Mountain wood tick is generally found in areas near the Rocky Mountains.
The Rocky Mountain wood tick can transmit:
Colorado tick fever
Rocky Mountain spotted fever
Tularemia
How to Check for Ticks
If you’re bitten by a tick, you probably won’t notice it. Their bites are usually painless. Due to their small size, ticks are often not seen even while they are feeding on a person’s blood.
Ticks can stay attached to the skin for hours or days. Finding and removing them quickly can lessen your chances of getting sick.
To check for ticks, do a thorough search of your entire body. Have someone check the back of your body or use a mirror. Pay special attention to your hair, around your ears, under your arms, in your belly button, around your waist, behind your knees and between your legs. Ticks particularly like areas where clothing is tight: waistband of undergarments and socks and any other areas where clothes may cinch against the skin. Also check for ticks on any pets, clothing or items you brought outside with you.
What happens if you get a tick bite?
If you are bitten by a tick, you should remove the tick and consult a medical provider. They will be able to help you understand how you may be affected by a tick bite and any particular symptoms you should look out for. A medical provider can also assist if you need help removing a tick safely.
General Tick Bite Symptoms
Most tick bites result in only mild symptoms such as swelling, redness, a sore on the skin or a small allergic rash.
Tick Removal
Wash the bite area and your hands using soap and disinfectant.
If you are bitten by a tick, it should be removed as soon as possible. If you are not comfortable with tick removal technique, you can visit your doctor or Wellnow Urgent Care to have it removed.
What is Lyme disease?
Lyme disease is an infectious illness that is caused by bacteria. Deer ticks and western black-legged ticks can pick up bacteria when they bite an infected animal. If the tick later bites a human, the bacteria can infect the person and cause Lyme disease. The disease can lead to severe and chronic health issues affecting the joints, nervous system and heart.
Lyme Disease Symptoms
Early symptoms of Lyme disease include flu-like symptoms and a rash around the bite. Often, the rash forms a distinctive bull’s-eye shape. Many people, however, do not notice any early symptoms.
As Lyme disease progresses, if left untreated, symptoms can include arthritis, fever, headache, stiffness of the neck, irregularities of the heart, temporary facial muscle paralysis, pain and numbness or weakness in the arms or legs and difficulties with concentration or memory.
How can I prevent tick bites?
Physicians recommend the following precautions to reduce the risk of being bitten by a tick:
Avoid walking through tall grass and weeds. This is where ticks are most commonly found.
Cover up outdoors with light-colored clothing. This should include a long-sleeved shirt and a head covering. Wear sturdy footwear and tuck your pants into your socks to keep ticks from getting under your clothes.
Use insect repellant containing 10 percent to 30 percent DEET.
Check yourself, your family members and your pets for ticks every two to three hours when outdoors.
Have a shower or bath within two hours of coming indoors.
Eliminate potential tick habitat around your home by keeping grass and weeds trimmed.
How can an urgent care provider help treat tick bites?
The sooner you get medical attention for a tick bite, the better your chances of avoiding illness.
WellNow Urgent Care offers tick removal, tick bite or rash assessment and disease treatment if necessary. As an urgent care provider, we are able to offer timely medical care on a walk-in or appointment basis (usually same-day).
Make an appointment with your doctor or visit us right away if:
You can’t fully remove a tick from your skin
You develop flu-like symptoms after being bitten by a tick
The bite appears infected (discharge, tenderness or redness are common indicators)
The rash increases in size or develops a bull’s-eye pattern
You suspect that you were bitten by a blacklegged tick (also known as a deer tick)
Seek emergency medical attention if you experience a severe headache, breathing difficulties, paralysis, or heart palpitations.
If you have questions about ticks or you believe you’ve been bitten, we’re here to help. Meet with a provider online or at a WellNow Urgent Care location near you.
WellNow Urgent Care is a series of urgent care clinics and virtual care serving the Midwest and Northeastern United States in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin
Information contained in this blog is for informational or educational purposes only and does not substitute professional medical advice or consultations with healthcare professionals. The content is not meant to be complete or exhaustive or to apply to any specific individual's medical condition. Always refer to the personalized information given to you by your doctor or contact us directly.
