With the recent news of an Indianapolis child contracting Rocky Mountain spotted fever, you should be aware of tick borne illnesses. In this column, I will outline some illnesses to look out for, their symptoms and how to treat them.
Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) is a tick borne disease caused by the bacterium Rickettsia rickettsii. It is transmitted to humans by the bites of infected ticks.
Symptoms of RSMF include: fever, headache, abdominal pain, vomiting, muscle pain, lack of appetite and red eyes. A rash may also develop, but it is often absent in the first few days and may never develop in some patients. And children with RMSF are less likely to report a headache but more likely to develop an early rash than adults. Other frequently observed signs in children are abdominal pain, altered mental status and red eyes.
RMSF can be a severe or even fatal illness if not treated right away. RMSF is treated with antibiotics; however, it is difficult for physicians to spot RMSF as the symptoms mimic other common illnesses. There also is no test currently available that can provide a conclusive result in time to make important decisions about treatment.
So, it is imperative to provide as much information as possible. Information such as recent tick bites, exposure to high grass and tick-infested areas, contact with dogs, similar illnesses in family members or pets or history of recent travel to areas of high incidence can be helpful in making the correct diagnosis.
Another disease you’ve probably heard of is Lyme disease, which is also spread through tick bites. Typical early symptoms (3 to 30 days after a tick bite) of Lyme disease include fever, chills, headache, fatigue, muscle and joint aches and swollen lymph nodes. Later symptoms (days to months after a tick bite) may be severe headaches, arthritis with severe joint pain (particularly large joints), loss of muscle tone or droop on one or both sides of the face, heart palpitations or irregular heartbeat, episodes of dizziness or shortness of breath, shooting pains, numbness or tingling in the hands or feet, problems with short term memory, nerve pain and inflammation of the spinal cord and brain.
An Erythema migrans (EM) rash also occurs in about 70 to 80 percent of infected people. It starts to appear in the early stages at the site of a tick bite. It then expands and becomes larger. The rash might feel warm to the touch, but it is usually not itchy or painful. It sometimes clears as it grows, creating a shape that resembles a bullseye. In the later stages, more EM rashes may appear on other areas of the body.
Most cases of Lyme disease are successfully treated with antibiotics, but some situations require more medication. To avoid contracting Lyme disease, you should take as many precautions as possible when going outside, especially in areas of tall grass. You should use insect repellant, check for ticks after being outside, remove ticks immediately and apply pesticides to spots where ticks live.
These are not the only two diseases that ticks can transfer. You can find a full list of tick borne diseases on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) website (www.cdc.gov/features/stopticks/). Be knowledgeable about the illnesses ticks spread, what precautions to take and how best to treat tick borne diseases.
Contact your health care provider or visit an urgent care center as soon as possible if signs of a tick borne disease appear or if you feel uneasy about a tick bite. If you are in need of a primary care physician, call 317-880-8687 or visit www.eskenazihealth.edu/doctors.
Nydia Nunez-Estrada, M.D.
Family Medicine
Eskenazi Health Urgent Care East