The Environmental Health Division of the health department oversees various programs, but one program of increased importance this time of year is Lyme disease. Lyme disease awareness is important in Cayuga County. During the summer months, deer ticks can seem pesky and harmless, but they actually carry diseases that can make us sick.
Lyme disease is a bacterial infection in humans caused by the bite of an infected deer tick. Ticks are very active when the weather stays above freezing, usually from April to November. In tick-infested areas, playing in the yard can result in exposure to ticks.
Ticks are generally found in shady, moist areas at ground level. They cling to tall grass, brush and shrubs, usually no more than 18 to 24 inches off the ground. If brushed up against, they can attach to people or animals. Once on their host, the ticks can find a place to feed, often in hairy areas of the body like the groin, armpit and scalp, and embed their mouth parts through the skin and into the host's blood stream to begin feeding. Deer ticks, because they are so small (about the size of a sesame seed or smaller), can be extremely difficult to detect once they attach to their host.
If you find a tick attached to your skin (or your pets), do not panic. Not all ticks are infected and the risk of Lyme disease is greatly reduced if the tick is removed within the first 36 hours.
How to remove a tick:
1. Using tweezers, grasp the tick near the mouthparts, as close to your skin as possible.
2. Pull the tick in a steady, outward motion away from the skin.
3. Do NOT use kerosene, matches, or petroleum jelly to remove the tick as this may cause the tick to regurgitate or salivate the infected fluids into your bloodstream, increasing your risk of infection.
4. Once the tick is removed, disinfect the site with soap and water, rubbing alcohol or hydrogen peroxide.
5. Place the tick in a small container with rubbing alcohol.
6. Contact the Cayuga County Environmental Health Division at 253-1405.
Early symptoms of 60 to 80 percent of known cases of Lyme disease include:
1. Circular rash at or near the site of the tick bite between three days and one month after the bite. After the rash appears, you may experience the following mild symptoms:
2. Fever or chills
3. Muscle or joint pain
4. Headaches
5. Fatigue
Severe symptoms may not appear for weeks, months or years after being infected. It is recommended that if you appear to have a rash with any of the other symptoms listed above, contact your health care provider as soon as possible. Patients treated with antibiotics in the early stage of infection usually experience rapid and complete recovery. If left untreated, Lyme disease can cause a number of severe long-term health problems.
Take preventive measures against ticks:
1. Keep lawns mowed and edges trimmed.
2. Remove brush and leaf litter away from the house and preferably off the ground.
3. Stack woodpiles away from the house and preferably off the ground.
4. Walk in the center of paths to avoid overhanging grass and bushy areas.
5. Wear light-colored clothing to spot ticks more easily.
6. Wear a hat and pull back long hair.
7. Locate children's swing sets and other play equipment in a sunny, dry area of the yard, away from the woods.
8. Keep the ground under bird feeders clean so as not to attract small animals.
9. Conduct regular tick checks on exposed skin and clothing. Remember to thoroughly check your children and pets.
10. Consider using insect repellent (be sure to follow directions on the product label). Do not apply repellents near eyes, nose or mouth and use sparingly around ears. Do not apply repellents directly to children. Apply to your own hands and then put it on the child.
The Environmental Health Division provides a service of submitting ticks to the New York State Department of Health for species identification. If you have a tick you would like tested or you have more questions, you may contact the Cayuga County Environmental Health Division at 253-1405. You may also visit the Cayuga County Health Department Web site at www.cayugacounty.us/hhs/doh.
Elane Daly is director of health and human services for Cayuga County.
She can be reached at 253-1560 or cchealth@dfa.state.ny.us
Ticks are generally found in shady, moist areas at ground level. They cling to tall grass, brush and shrubs, usually no more than 18 to 24 inches off the ground. If brushed up against, they can attach to people or animals. Once on their host, the ticks can find a place to feed, often in hairy areas of the body like the groin, armpit and scalp, and embed their mouth parts through the skin and into the host's blood stream to begin feeding. Deer ticks, because they are so small (about the size of a sesame seed or smaller), can be extremely difficult to detect once they attach to their host.
If you find a tick attached to your skin (or your pets), do not panic. Not all ticks are infected and the risk of Lyme disease is greatly reduced if the tick is removed within the first 36 hours.
How to remove a tick:
1. Using tweezers, grasp the tick near the mouthparts, as close to your skin as possible.
2. Pull the tick in a steady, outward motion away from the skin.
3. Do NOT use kerosene, matches, or petroleum jelly to remove the tick as this may cause the tick to regurgitate or salivate the infected fluids into your bloodstream, increasing your risk of infection.
4. Once the tick is removed, disinfect the site with soap and water, rubbing alcohol or hydrogen peroxide.
5. Place the tick in a small container with rubbing alcohol.
6. Contact the Cayuga County Environmental Health Division at 253-1405.
Early symptoms of 60 to 80 percent of known cases of Lyme disease include:
1. Circular rash at or near the site of the tick bite between three days and one month after the bite. After the rash appears, you may experience the following mild symptoms:
2. Fever or chills
3. Muscle or joint pain
4. Headaches
5. Fatigue
Severe symptoms may not appear for weeks, months or years after being infected. It is recommended that if you appear to have a rash with any of the other symptoms listed above, contact your health care provider as soon as possible. Patients treated with antibiotics in the early stage of infection usually experience rapid and complete recovery. If left untreated, Lyme disease can cause a number of severe long-term health problems.
Take preventive measures against ticks:
1. Keep lawns mowed and edges trimmed.
2. Remove brush and leaf litter away from the house and preferably off the ground.
3. Stack woodpiles away from the house and preferably off the ground.
4. Walk in the center of paths to avoid overhanging grass and bushy areas.
5. Wear light-colored clothing to spot ticks more easily.
6. Wear a hat and pull back long hair.
7. Locate children's swing sets and other play equipment in a sunny, dry area of the yard, away from the woods.
8. Keep the ground under bird feeders clean so as not to attract small animals.
9. Conduct regular tick checks on exposed skin and clothing. Remember to thoroughly check your children and pets.
10. Consider using insect repellent (be sure to follow directions on the product label). Do not apply repellents near eyes, nose or mouth and use sparingly around ears. Do not apply repellents directly to children. Apply to your own hands and then put it on the child.
The Environmental Health Division provides a service of submitting ticks to the New York State Department of Health for species identification. If you have a tick you would like tested or you have more questions, you may contact the Cayuga County Environmental Health Division at 253-1405. You may also visit the Cayuga County Health Department Web site at www.cayugacounty.us/hhs/doh.
Elane Daly is director of health and human services for Cayuga County.
She can be reached at 253-1560 or cchealth@dfa.state.ny.us
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