If you’ve heard of Lyme Disease, you might be wondering what a bite from a tick has to do with osteopathy. The condition is a bacterial infection, and although we can’t treat it (you need antibiotics from your GP), we need to be able to spot it. Some of the early signs include things that might lead a patient to clinic.
Tick Bites
People often think that the ticks that carry Lyme Disease are confined to the Scottish Highlands and New Forest, but in recent years they have been found all across the UK. Although you are more likely to be bitten when passing through long grasses, they can hide out in well maintained grass too. Ticks are much smaller than you might expect, and often their bites go unnoticed if the insect has already fallen off. If you do find a tick still attached to your skin, avoid the temptation to try and pull it off, as it may leave mouthparts embedded in your skin which can be prone to further infection. The NHS advises using fine tweezers to grab the tick from as close to your skin as possible rather than pulling the body. They also advise using insect repellent and wearing long trousers when walking in the countryside.
Symptoms of Lyme Disease
Noticeable symptoms may not develop until a few days or weeks after the bite. Muscle aches and headaches are two of the common symptoms, which is why patients may present at clinic. Alongside this, flu-like symptoms and fatigue are typical symptoms.
The rash is often the giveaway sign of Lyme disease, but it’s not always the clear bullseye illustrated above, especially for people with darker skin. A general red, hot, or swollen area could also be a Lyme disease rash. Your GP is the best port of call for identifying this. They may be able to give you a diagnosis and treatment plan based on the rash and history alone. Sometimes they might need to carry out a blood test, but diagnosis can still be tricky as the blood tests are not completely accurate.
Timely Intervention
Like with any infection, Lyme disease is capable of getting out of hand, which is why quick intervention from a doctor is important. Current antibiotics prescribed for this can be quite strong and need to be taken for a few weeks, but it is important that you don’t end your course early. You should speak to you GP again if you are having problems completing your course.
Chronic Lyme Disease is a controversial condition with symptoms that overlap things like chronic fatigue/ME and fibromyalgia. It is not typically diagnosed following an earlier diagnosis of Lyme disease. Symptoms that persist for months after an initial Lyme disease diagnosis should be referred for further investigation, regardless of whether there has been a complete resolution and relapse or if the symptoms have remained throughout. The musculoskeletal and other symptoms have some parallels with rheumatological conditions, so don’t suffer in silence.
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