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[Thorpe] Welcome to Beyond The Data.
I'm Dr. Phoebe Thorpe and here
with me today is Dr. Bobbi Pritt from the Mayo Clinic.
Thank you so much for joining us.
[Pritt]Thank you for having me.
[Thorpe] Our session today is about tick-borne diseases.
We heard a lot of good information about,
about tick-borne diseases.
Can you share some of the highlights
that you think people should know about tick-borne diseases?
[Pritt] Sure, absolutely.
Well I think first it's important to know
that human biting ticks are found in many parts
of the United States and they can transmit
through their bite a number of bacteria, viruses and parasites.
So one of the most important messages I have for people is
to know what ticks are in your area and what diseases
and then know what the mayor symptoms of those diseases are
so they can keep a watch out for them.
The CDC has some excellent information including some maps
that shows the distribution of the major human biting ticks
and the diseases they carry.
So that's a good resource.
The other thing that I think is important
for the general public is that if they're feeling ill
and they go to their doctor, they should mention
that if they've had a recent thick bite,
because that's important and the physician can use
that information to help determine what's causing
their illness.
[Thorpe] And so if,
these tick-borne diseases they're carried by ticks
so avoiding ticks is important.
[Pritt] It's pretty important.
Right, yeah.
[Thorpe] So, what can people do to avoid being bitten by ticks?
[Pritt] Yeah, that's a great question
because prevention is key.
So at Mayo Clinic we developed the ABC's
of tick bite prevention.
So it's pretty straight forward.
"A" is avoid.
We want to avoid the areas where ticks are found which is
in tall grasses, in bushes, leaf litter and the ticks can't fly
but they can climb up on vegetation and grab
on to you when you walk by.
So something simple just like when you're in the middle
of a path avoiding the edges where the tall grasses are,
that could help prevent tick exposure.
So that's "A".
Now "B" is bug spray.
When you're going to be outside, you are in some situations going
to be exposed to ticks.
You can't help it but you want to be
out in the great outdoors so, picking some simple measures
like using bug spray specifically a product
that has 20% to 30% DEET.
You can also use a product with Picaridin,
you can spray Permethrin directly on your clothing
and that takes me to C, which is clothing.
So if is no too hot and you can stand it, wearing long sleeves,
wearing long pants, that will provide less opportunity,
less skin for the ticks to attach and bite.
Now, all of these are great measures but when you come
in from outside, it's really important to do that tick check.
Check yourself, check your family
and check your pets as well.
[Thorpe] Yeah, that and other things
and showering is another thing that I had heard.
[Pritt] Showering's really good because you're more likely
to see ticks and catch them if they're in your scalp
or other parts of your body you may forget to check otherwise.
[Thorpe] Yeah.
And then, what should you do if you find a tick on you?
[Pritt] Yeah, good question.
So don't panic, that's probably one of the first things
but you want to remove it as quickly as possible.
So the best way to do that is using fine tick tweezers
and if these are the tweezers if you have a tick on you,
you basically want to get as close to the skin as possible,
grasp firmly and then just pull it
out in a smooth continuous motion.
You don't want to twist, you don't want
to squeeze the tick cause that may cause it to regurgitate some
of its stomach contents into your skin
and that may transmit diseases.
You also want to avoid folklore remedies
like putting petroleum jelly on the tick or burning the tick
with a match or a lighter
because that could actually damage your skin,
damage the tick and maybe even increase the likelihood
of getting infection.
[Thorpe] And then, if they find the tick should they bring it
into their doctor?
Are there any recommendations about that?
[Pritt] Yeah, you can.
Depending in what area of the country you live in,
if Lyme diseases is prevalent and present
in a large amount then if the tick has been attached
for 36 hours or more, and you can tell
that by how swollen it is, how gorged then it is a good idea
to take the tick, bring it to your doctor.
In some situations your doctor may prescribe antibiotics
to prevent Lyme disease.
[Thorpe] Ok, so just depends on...
[Pritt] It depends on where you are.
It never hurts to put the tick in a Ziploc bag
and you can just hold on to it in case you need it.
[Thorpe] In the session today we there was a reminder
about treating with starting Digoxin immediately
if you suspect Rocky Mount spotted fever.
What are some of the other things
that provide health care provider should keep in mind
if they are treating somebody
with a tick-borne disease or suspect one?
[Pritt] Sure well, probably an important thing to know is
that there can be co-infections
so the patient may not be infected with just one thing
but may have two organisms and have two infections.
So when ordering tests
and considering whether the patient needs treatment,
the physician needs to think of what that patient may have.
It may not just be Lyme disease but it may also,
the patient may have Anaplasmosis
or Ehrlichiosis there's different Borealis species there
are some viruses too.
[Thorpe] And all of those need to be, you need to...
[Pritt] Consider it a differential.
Exactly. [Thorpe] And then, we also heard some
about public health efforts that are being done.
Can you tell us a little bit about the public health efforts
that are being done for tick-borne diseases?
[Pritt] Well I think the public health plays such a key role
in providing education to the public but also
to the physicians that are seeing the patients
and to the nurses and the other members of the healthcare team.
So we all need to work together as part
of a multidisciplinary team so that we have all
of the right information, treatment algorithms, testing
and we are all familiar
with what diseases are circulating in our areas.
[Thorpe] And I know CDC recently updated their treatment
guidelines for tick-borne diseases.
[Pritt] That's a great resource.
I always refer patients there if they want more information.
[Thorpe] And then you mentioned the maps that are available
for telling people where the diseases are I bet that's
helpful too.
[Pritt] Extremely.
[Dr. Phoebe Thorpe] Yeah, okay.
Well thank you very much for joining us.
[Pritt] Well, thank you [Thorpe] And thank you
for joining us for Beyond the Data.
See you next time.
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