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April 8, 2024

The tick - diseases and protective measures

As soon as the first rays of sunlight are visible, we are attracted to our gardens or to beautiful walks or hikes. Actually a peaceful venture. If there were not a danger that insidiously lurked in the beautiful nature: The tick.

species

There are over 800 different types of ticks worldwide.
The most common in Germany is the Ixodes ricinus, also known as "Holzbock". He belongs to the family Schildschild.

habitat

Their habitat is outdoors, here preferred to:

forest edges
clearings
streams

"The tick crawls on the ground, in the grass or in the bushes and undergrowth.
Ticks love warmth and moisture. They are therefore rarely active on dry and cold days. Buried in the foliage under the snow, the ticks can survive mild winters.

Natural enemy of the tick:

The tick has few natural enemies. Only a few species of birds eat the tick. In addition, there is the so-called mini wasp (size: 1-2mm) which it has targeted the tick. In addition, the tick may become the victim of a worm infestation that ends in death.

Diseases

TBE:

Disease caused by the TBE virus that can lead to meningitis or brain inflammation, possibly even death.

risk areas
According to the Robert Koch Institute, Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Southern Hesse and Thuringia are clearly risk areas.

Danger of an FSME
Around 2% of all ticks in the risk area are infected with the TBE virus. Only one in three people bitten by a TBE-infected tick becomes ill with the disease.
Conclusion: The risk in the risk area after a tick bite to get TBE is currently 1: 150.

Protection against TBE
German health authorities recommend vaccination against TBE to all people who live in the risk areas or plan their holidays there and spend a lot of time outdoors.

Important information
In contrast to its name, the tick-borne encephalitis does not occur exclusively in early summer. At prolonged temperatures above seven degrees, the TBE tick becomes active. Thus, the TBE virus can be transmitted in the winter.
Because the TBE virus is directly in the saliva of the tick, it can be transmitted immediately at the ticks of the tick.
The question as to why only some people get stung by a tick infected with TBE could not be finally clarified. What is certain is that both the Older as well as that gender play an essential role. For example, FSME breaks out twice as often in men than in women. The older the sufferer, the worse the TBE can go.

disease:

Infectious disease caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi. It can attack all organs as well as the nervous system, joints and tissues of bacteria.

risk areas
Spread worldwide wherever there are ticks.

Risk of Lyme disease
According to the latest estimates, tens of thousands of people are diagnosed every year in Germany. Since Lyme disease has symptoms that are complex and also typical of other diseases, it is difficult to diagnose Lyme disease.

Protection against Lyme disease
There is no vaccine protection against Lyme disease.
However, because the borrelia are in the intestine of the tick, it takes some time to get into the blood of the victim. It is said that it takes between twelve and twenty-four hours to get infected with Lyme disease.
Principle: The faster the tick is removed, the lower the risk of developing Lyme disease!

The sting

The tick is made aware of the approach of a victim (landlord) via its Hallerian organ, which is located in its front legs. Landed on their host, the tick seeks a suitable stab point. For this she can spend hours crawling around on her host. So that the victim does not feel any of the stitch, the tick stuns the area with an anesthetic. When stabbing, she then drills with barbs, which are in the mouth of the tick, into the skin.

Remove tick:

Tighten the tick close up using tweezers or pointed tweezers. Slightly move back and forth to release the barbs. Then slowly and controlled (not with a jerk) remove. It may also be rotated slightly. Then disinfect the stitching point.

More general protective measures: