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Landesgesundheitsamt Significantly more Lyme disease and TBE cases due to tick bites
Especially many ticks are active this summer. The small bloodsuckers can transmit dangerous infectious diseases such as tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) or Lyme disease. The case numbers of these diseases are already quite high.
Especially many ticks on the way
Ticks are dangerous disease carriers. The small parasites can, among other things, transmit infectious diseases such as tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) or Lyme disease. Due to the mild winter and the damp, warm spring, many ticks are on the move this year. The higher the number of bloodsuckers, the greater the risk of disease.
The number of tick-borne Lyme disease and TBE cases has increased significantly this year. Especially climatic and ecological factors influence this increase. (Image: emer / fotolia.com) Significantly more illnesses than in the previous year
This is also shown by new data from Bavaria. The number of illness-related illnesses in the Free State has increased significantly so far this year. As reported by the dpa news agency, the State Office of Public Health (LGL) in Erlangen had already registered more than 2,600 cases of Lyme disease at the end of the first week of August - 40 percent more than in the same period in 2015. The number of TBE cases was already around 100 - 26 percent more than last year.
According to a spokeswoman for the LGL, this is an "expected fluctuation during the reporting years". For example, in 2013, the number of cases of Lyme disease in the same period was much higher at around 3,080, even though the obligation to register in Bavaria in that year was only introduced at the beginning of March. In 2014 and 2015, the figures were around 1,800.
Lyme disease can be treated with medications
Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne infectious disease in this country. Among the symptoms of the disease include general symptoms such as fatigue, night sweats, fever and nonspecific joint and muscle pain.
The so-called "Wanderröte" - a red ring that surrounds the tick bite - is a 100 percent symptom, but only occurs in half of the patients. The disease can be controlled by taking antibiotics, otherwise it can lead to late effects such as joint, heart muscle or nerve inflammation.
TBE can be fatal
TBE cases reached a similar number a few years ago as they did this year. In 2014 and 2015, however, only between 70 and 80 cases had been registered. Pathogens of TBE are viruses. After infection, inflammation of the meninges, brain or spinal cord can occur. About one third of the infected people have symptoms of illness. First, there are flu-like symptoms such as fever, headache, vomiting and dizziness.
At around ten percent, according to doctors, meningitis and encephalitis are also associated with the risk of lasting damage such as paralysis. In one to two percent of sufferers, the disease leads to death. Although there are no drugs for the treatment, but you can get vaccinated against it.
Protect against ticks
To avoid infections, it is best to protect yourself from ticks. Ideally, one stays on the trails while walking. When hiking, you should always remember to wear long trousers and, if necessary, put the trouser legs in the socks. Specialized sprays, known as repellents, can keep the creepy-crawlies away. In addition, one should search thoroughly after spending time in nature and, if necessary, react quickly.
Previously recommended methods should not be used
After a tick bite, you have to hurry. The tick should be removed as soon as possible. The LGL writes on its website: "Previously recommended methods such as dabbing the tick with oil, glue, nail polish or other liquids should not be used, as the tick may even" break down "its stomach contents and thereby transmit the pathogens." Among other things, it becomes a sharp, well-fitting tweezers, with which you grab the bloodsucker directly over the skin surface and slowly pulls out.
High tick activity can drag you into the fall
According to the LGL, several climatic and environmental factors influence the number of cases of TBE and Lyme disease. These included the activity and life cycle of ticks, the recreational behavior of humans as well as the size and distribution of the mouse populations that are host animals of ticks. "If the weather stays warm and humid this year, high levels of tick activity can be expected well into autumn," says the LGL spokeswoman. (Ad)