What to do if you are bitten by a tick

WHAT TO DO IF YOU ARE

BITTEN BY A TICK

By:  Dr. Kalpana Shere-Wolfe, University of Maryland School of Medicine

If you are bitten by a tick you may or may not need to be treated based on the description of the tick and how long it has been attached.   

1. Remove the tick if you can following the instructions below:

a. Use fine tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin surface as possible.

b. Pull backwards gently but firmly, using an even, steady pressure. Do not jerk or twist.

c. After removing the tick, wash the skin and hands thoroughly with soap and water.

2. You do not need to keep the tick. Please note the following:

a. Its color and size

b. If it was attached to your skin or just resting on your skin

c. If it was big, round, and full of blood. 

3. You do not need to be tested for Lyme disease at this time.  Even people who become infected will not have a positive blood test until approximately two to six weeks after the tick bite.

4. If the tick was not attached, easy to remove or just walking on the skin, and was still flat, tiny and not engorged with blood  or not attached for ≥ 24 to 36 hours when it was removed it could not have transmitted infection.  In this case you do NOT need to be treated. 

5. You may need to be treated if the following are true:

a. The attached tick looks like an adult or nymphal  blacklegged (I. scapularis) deer tick.  Ticks that are brown and approximately the size of a poppy seed or pencil point are deer ticks. These can transmit Lyme disease. (See picture below for comparison with the dog tick or lone star tick.)

b. Tick is estimated to have been attached for ≥ 24 to 36 hours (based upon how engorged the tick appears or the amount of time since outdoor exposure)

References: CDC, IDSA Practice Guidelines for Lyme Disease