Tick Bite - Bedminster,NJ

I have some experience with Lyme and do not mess around or take any chances. If you kept the tick, they can test it. If not, the dr likely will put him him on precautionary antibiotics. Please consult a good doctor. Ticks are very dangerous whether you see the bulls eye or not. It doesn't always show up when there is Lyme. Rocky mountain is also a risk.

ADDED after reading another post: Please NEVER burn off a tick! You cannot save the tick that way, you risk burning your child or yourself, and the tick will feel the heat and its body will release more toxins into the human! This is an "old wives' tale" way to remove a tick -- the tick may come off but you'll have more toxin in your system and can't retain the tick for testing. I've had a couple of advanced first aid courses and we are told never, ever to remove ticks by burning them off or smothering them in Vaseline, which also causes them to release more toxin into the person. Please do not follow this advice! Look online for safe ways to remove a tick with tweezers.

I'd ask the doctor for specifics about symptoms, but Lyme symptoms are very similar to those of many other common illnesses so it can be tough to diagnose. If he seems to come down with a lingering cold, or is just tired a lot, have him tested for Lyme. The bullseye rash is a good indicator but is not universally present with Lyme, so don't go just by the fact there is no bullseye rash yet. It could still appear. It is best if he gets tested because by the time symptoms appear, the Lyme is taking hold and you can knock it out earlier with antibiotics if you start when it's diagnosed rather than when symptoms have been present a while.

It's too bad you flushed the tick. If he ever gets another one, keep it in a plastic ziplock bag and have it checked -- the local health department can actually test the ticks themselves to see if they are carrying Lyme, and if the tick has it, a doctor usually wants to start the person on antibiotics immediately so you don't have to wait for symptoms.

Did you check the rest of his body thoroughly? One tick may mean others. Keep them if you find them! Check his scalp very thoroughly and also check his groin and underarms in particular as well as the rest of him. It's not fun, but ticks like dark and damp places where the skin folds, so the groin is one area they can appear. My friend's sons both had ticks on their scrotums after being outside, so don't hesitate to check your son's scrotum and genitals. Sorry, but those are just the kinds of areas they like.

Also, look up symptoms of Rocky Mountain spotted fever, which ticks also can carry. I know someone who had it as an adult and it was miserable but again -- it acts like other disease so sometimes does not get accurately diagnosed.

Usually they don't worry too much unless you have reason to believe that the tick has been on for 24 hours. Keep an eye on your son, esp for fever or other signs of the body fighting infection. As for the immediate area, the "bulls eye" circles around the bite are indications of Lyme's Disease. If it's just red, that's normal.

When in doubt, you can go to an urgent care / MedExpress for this, too.

Hope all is well!

It looks like you have plenty of advice from where to go from here. May I suggest that if this happens again, please, don't just pull it out with your fingers or tweezers. By doing so, you chance having the head remain in your child's shoulder, etc... and thus, infection can occur. Do what my mom did to us kids: Light a match and hold it close to the tick's butt.... not close enough to burn your child, but close enough to feel the heat. The tick will back out on its own and then you can squish it. My siblings and I had many a tick removed this way when I was little.

I personally would NOT have flushed the tick. I would have kept it for testing.

Yes. I would call my doctor and talk with them. Catching Lyme disease EARLY is the key. And usually within 2 weeks of the "sting" as they stick a proboscis into the body to extract blood.

Lyme symptoms can come on as early as 12 hours for some and one month for others. If it is NOT caught within the first month - it's HARD to test after that and people are told it's all in their head, etc. My girlfriend had to go to an infectious disease doctor to get tested...and it's taken her almost 3 years to recover...

I agree with Laura M. Also, another way to remove a tick is to get a cotton ball and put antibacterial soap on it, and just lay the cotton ball on the tick, and apply pressure. It will release. I have done this and it really worked for me. Good luck on everything.

You need to take him to the ER or urgent Care and get a blood test done. It is critical that he be tested for diseases that ticks carry.

I have a friend that has been on antibiotics for 2 months and is still barely able to get out of bed each day because she got Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever from a tick bite. She had been outside that day and not for a week before. She is a bit of a recluse. The tick had NOT BEEN IN 24 hours but just a few at most. She was very very very ill from this tick. She found it because it started itching. She realized what it was right off and called us to take her to urgent care. They took the tick off and tested her right then.

Several people here got it this year from a single tick bite and they are all still feeling the effects.

I got bite by a tick in my ear at girls camp a few years ago and several weeks later I woke up shaking and pouring sweat off my body. We had gone to Tulsa for a romantic weekend and I ended up staying in the hospital for a couple of days on IV's of fluids and antibiotics. I felt like I was dying. I still don't remember much of that weekend but hubby tells me I told wonderful stories when I was out of my head...he still won't tell me what they were but he grins like a loon when he mentions it.

Ticks carry a lot of different things and none of them are good. It's better to be safe about this instead of waking up in the middle of the night with him ranting and raging and running a high fever.

I don't think you need to panic and rush to the ER! I think a phone call to the doctor might make you feel better.

Usually they just say to put a little antibacterial cream (like neosporin or bacitracin) on the wound and cover it with a bandaid. Watch for the bull's eye, as you said, or watch for a really huge red spot.

The missing tick is now a done deal so don't worry about it at this point. We've all been taught the conflicting views of tweezers vs. matches, and I believe both are now rejected by doctors since Lyme and other diseases have increased. I have a friend who had 2 serious tick-borne illnesses and I'm aware of the terrible dangers (he was in serious trouble for about a month), but I had a tick bite myself and had no problems and did not require medical attention.

So, without panicking and rushing to urgent care, I'd call the on-call pediatrician and report the situation, and get some advice.

our doctor told us the tick had to be on for 24 hours before they were concerned.