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Ticks
Following on from previous posting “Warning of tick bites escalating in Spain” Mazarrón Council's Environmental Heath dept has provided the following leaflet from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, click on this link: -
https://camposolfactcrusader.com/national/
Warning of tick bites escalating in Spain
An article in online newsfeed “20 minutos” has been published, the article also contains a video of what to look for, click on the link (translation below) https://www.20minutos.es/salud/alertan-sobre-el-aumento-de-garrapatas-en-espana-como-evitarlas-cual-es-la-tecnica-para-quitarlas-4785389/?autoref=true
WARNING about the increase of ticks in Spain: how to avoid them? What is the technique to remove them?
ANECPLA (National Association of Environmental Health Companies) asks for extreme precautions to avoid possible serious diseases that can be transmitted.
An expert explains to “20 minutos” how to proceed when a tick is attached to the body.
Summer is coming and many people go out into the countryside to spend the day, a very widespread leisure choice in Spain. However, despite the great benefits of going out to enjoy nature and breathe fresh air, there are also drawbacks that must be taken into account; one that is increasingly common is tick bites.
According to the National Association of Environmental Health Companies (ANECPLA), in Spain “the number of people who go to medical care centres with tick bites has skyrocketed”, so they ask for extreme caution to prevent these small animals transmitting serious diseases.
Where are ticks found?
Ticks are usually found in the higher parts of vegetation, and when a warm-blooded animal passes by, they drop down in search of the blood they need. In addition, when they land on the skin of a person or an animal, they are barely felt, because they exhale an anaesthetic before they attach firmly and proceed to suck the blood.
Milagros Fernández de Lezeta, president of ANECPLA, explains to “20 minutos” how latterly climate change is affecting the proliferation of tick bites: “With climate change, a change in tick behaviour is being observed. Cases have been found in which the tick does not let itself fall off, but instead remains predatory, adopting a strange movement, as it moves searching its victim”.
Likewise, he adds that “there are areas that were not colonized before, such as the colder areas, but with climate change these places have become temperate and ticks are appearing.”
For Fernández de Lezeta, a fundamental issue to prevent them from appearing in towns and cities is the maintenance of parks and gardens, something that for various circumstances is no longer done in the usual way. “Before, vegetation sanitary (spraying) treatments were carried out to remove weeds, but those treatments have been reduced, because the (chemical) products are no longer permitted. Furthermore, now with COVID the priorities for local administrations have changed and those areas have not been cleaned, allowing species like ticks to colonize them” he explains.
What diseases can they transmit?
Although there are many diseases that ticks can transmit, the most serious are: Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever, Lyme disease or viral encephalitis.
The Crimean-Congo disease was endemic in Africa until 2013, but since that year nine affected people have been detected in Spain, of which three died as a result of a tick bite.
“It is difficult for a tick to transmit a disease to us, but once it transmits a disease such as the Crimean-Congo disease, the mortality rate is very high, 30%,” warns the president of ANECPLA, adding that ” as a reference in terms of percentage of mortality, COVID is between 0.5% and 1% “.
How to avoid a bite?
Protect your skin with long pants and a long-sleeved shirt, or use a tick repellent, are some of the tips to avoid being bitten, but you should also “avoid going through areas of denser vegetation when walking on trails”, adds Fernández de Lezeta.
In addition, it is very common that some animals such as dogs, who usually go with their owners on visits to the countryside, return home with a tick attached to their body. “It is necessary to avoid passing through zones of high vegetation and also to apply repellent”, ANECPLA recommend.
In addition, it is essential to check the animals when returning home: “It is important to look at their ears and armpits; in all those areas that are hotter, because that is where the ticks will be.”
It has already bitten me … what do I do?
In the worst case, if the tick has finally managed to attach to the body, it is advisable to have the removal done by a professional. “When someone is bitten by a tick, you have to be careful with the extraction, because sometimes it (the body) is removed and the oral apparatus remains inside, which causes infections,” explains Fernández de Lezeta.
If you are not in a position to go to a health centre, the best way to remove a tick from the skin is by using tweezers. “It is taken from the head of the tick and pulled up, to avoid that the oral apparatus remaining” he insists.
In addition, in that case “it is important to take the tick to a health centre, where it can be analysed for microorganisms and parasites that may have transmitted an infection of any important disease.”
The President of ANECPLA, is also quoted in the Daily Express as saying
“This summer, the risk is not only in the countryside but in an environment that we frequent so much now on our vacations [including by] the beach or the pool. We have to remain equally alert.”
Additional local information
Councillor for Camposol, Silvana Buxton will be contacting Mazarrón Council’s sanitation department to enquire if any preventative treatment or advice can be offered against tick proliferation, details will be published when available.
