Dr Hive: Q about tick bites

[MindyD]

I know that ticks are already bad this season because our winter was so mild, and our kids spent some time in the woods while visiting their grandparents' house. After a 3+ hour drive home, ds 9 discovered a tick had bitten him in the MOST sensitive spot you can imagine. Dh is freaked out by ticks so I had to **ahem** take care of things. The tick had attached itself very well, but I managed to get it out, head and all. It's now dead and saved in a bag just in case we need to go to the doctor.

Okay, so here's my question. The bite has become swollen, but I'm not sure if it's because it was so hard to remove the tick, the location of the bite, or both. Should I go ahead and take him to the doctor tomorrow if things haven't improved or is this normal? I've never seen a tick bite swell like this, but then, I've never been bit in such a sensitive area either! By the way, I feel so bad for my now traumatized son! What do you think?

 

Mindy

[Mandylubug]

My son seems to get a tick on his jewels every spring.. I swear I am not even shocked any more.. and that area seems to swell more so than other areas, imo...

 

In GA, they are quite common. I have already removed four ticks from my kids this spring :/ I rotate antibiotic ointment and hydrocortisone ointment. They can itch for WEEKS and all of us are quite sensitive and get large swollen places each time, no matter the size of the booger!

[NotSoObvious]

My daughter just had one on her tummy and it was red for a few days, mostly because she kept touching it. I think it's normal for it to be red if it's in a sensitive area or if the child touches it. You usually take some skin out with the tick, so it's like getting a small cut, I suppose.

 

It's the red bulls eye rash or flu-like symptoms you want to watch for. It sounds like you caught it pretty early though.

 

I'm sure he's fine. :)

 

 

My friend's little boy had seed ticks all over his...sensitive area, and she had to pluck them all out. Poor thing!

[MindyD]

Thanks! You've said what I was thinking, but I wanted to hear from someone else that had actually experienced this. I told him to keep an eye on it and tell me if anything changes.

[Catwoman]

Personally, I would take him to the doctor and request a 30 day supply of antibiotics, because a bulls-eye rash doesn't always appear (and sometimes in a "sensitive area," even if you get a rash, it looks more like a red blotch or a prickly heat rash.)

 

I have had Lyme Disease, and firmly believe that tick bites are nothing to mess around with.

 

How long was the tick on your ds? If it was less than 24 hours, there's a good chance he's fine, but if it had already embedded itself pretty well, it may have been more than 24 hours, and a visit to the doctor is in order.

 

My doctor (who treats a lot of Lyme patients) doesn't believe in waiting for symptoms to appear, as once you have the symptoms, it's a lot harder to get rid of the Lyme than it is to prevent the symptoms from appearing at all by using antibiotics at the first sign of a tick bite, unless you know for sure that the tick was there for less than a day.

 

I have always used doxycyclene, but I don't know if they prescribe that for kids. Amoxycillin would be another option, particularly at this early stage.

 

I don't mean to scare you or worry you, but I am in the "better safe than sorry" camp when it comes to Lyme Disease.

[pehp]

Personally, I would take him to the doctor and request a 30 day supply of antibiotics, because a bulls-eye rash doesn't always appear (and sometimes in a "sensitive area," even if you get a rash, it looks more like a red blotch or a prickly heat rash.)

 

I have had Lyme Disease, and firmly believe that tick bites are nothing to mess around with.

 

How long was the tick on your ds? If it was less than 24 hours, there's a good chance he's fine, but if it had already embedded itself pretty well, it may have been more than 24 hours, and a visit to the doctor is in order.

 

My doctor (who treats a lot of Lyme patients) doesn't believe in waiting for symptoms to appear, as once you have the symptoms, it's a lot harder to get rid of the Lyme than it is to prevent the symptoms from appearing at all by using antibiotics at the first sign of a tick bite, unless you know for sure that the tick was there for less than a day.

 

I have always used doxycyclene, but I don't know if they prescribe that for kids. Amoxycillin would be another option, particularly at this early stage.

 

I don't mean to scare you or worry you, but I am in the "better safe than sorry" camp when it comes to Lyme Disease.

 

 

This is what I would do too. I had rocky mtn spotted fever several years ago and had none of the typical symptoms (rash...fever) until my body went crazy and exhaustion and joint pain set in!

 

And my tick was on less than 24 hours. Grrr....little beast!!!!!

[KidsHappen]

We went to GA for spring break and my dd got some sort of bite. We didn't actually see a tick but she did get the large red bullseye that is hard, red, hot and starting to pus. We just got home from the dr. with a prescription anti-biotic. She has just recovered from shingles and is having severe allergy symptoms this year so she is not feeling so great this last month or so and it is really messing with her attendence.

 

I would keep an eye on it for a day or so and if it does show definite improvement go to the dr.

[Butter]

The sensitive areas do seem to swell more with tick bites.

 

If we went on antibiotics for every tick bite most of us would be on antibiotics all summer. My mom, my 5 year old, and I have all had Lyme Disease. Neither my mom nor I ever saw a tick (we both got it 9 years ago). My son had only had the tick on him a few hours when we pulled it off. He got Lyme Disease two years ago.

 

Chances are very good your son is just fine. Just keep an eye out for a rash or unexplained flu-like symptoms. The swelling should go down in a couple days or so.