[Fultonius]

Why the hell is there not a vaccine available for Lyme's disease?  I know a few people who've had it ( one who didn't find out for years and it led to him not being able to carry out his job).

On the plus side, the last guy that got it was diagnosed fairly quickly (the doctor knew plenty about it) and is on the Antibiotics for 2 weeks. Should be fine.

[Clart]

Interesting. I got covered in 50 odd deer ticks the other day, easily surpassing my previous best efforts. I slayed most of them but still got bitten quite a bit. Apparently I have to wait to see if I get the tell tale red circles appearing, which can take up to a month, a time interval that corresponds with 'early-stage' Lyme disease that is most easily treated with antibiotics.
Is there not an simple blood test that the GP can do?   

[Fultonius]

As far as i'm aware (don't have time to check facts - sorry slackers...  ) the blood test takes a few weeks and isn't conclusive. Also, the "bulls-eye" ring only occurs in about 50% of cases.

Best plan is if you've been bitten and then feel like shit in the next few weeks (flu like symptons, achey jonts, fever etc.) then get yersel to the doctor and tell them you've been bitten, you feel like shit and you need the anti-biotics!

[remus]

Low demand, apparently.

http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd-vac/lyme/default.htm

edit: make that low demand and  numpties thinking it made them ill.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyme_disease#Vaccination

[moose]

A quick caution: ff you're planning on climbing in the Frankenjura or the Czech republic and get bitten by ticks, there's also the possibility of Tick Borne Encephalitis.  It's a sneaky bastard with the possibility of turning very nasty: initial flu-like symptoms a week or two after being bitten, then after around a weeks remission, the possible onset of a potentially fatal meningitis-style illness.  Supposedly the locals in the Frankenjura  are all vaccinated against it.

Scare yourself at:
http://www.patient.co.uk/doctor/Tick-borne-Encephalitis.htm

[chummer]

I caught Lyme disease in France dossing at Russan. (Yep I know, it's a good tick....   ) I got the bulls eye rash that expanded at a noticable rate everyday. I had this rash before I felt any groggyness so went to the docs who didn't have a fuckin clue, eventually I got a sustained and hefty dose of Antibiotics which seemed to sort it out. It left me feeling pretty weak and a little achy for a few weeks but it soon passed. I didn't have the test as the doc insinuated it was pointless and it wasn't accuate.

What's scary is the fact that I doubt that with the knowledge I had then I would not have gone to the docs if I hadn't had the crazy rash as i would have just put it down to fighting off a cold or something. (i never saw the tick on me, just the bite on my back which felt like it could have been a mozzy)

I still wonder occasionally when I get achey or painful joints whether I got it in time but it's been about 5 years now so hopefully I'm in the clear 

Basically what Fultinus says; the only way to prevent it is to go the docs if you get bit for antibiotics as a precaution, but admittedly I still don't know if I would really do this if I found a tick on me tomorrow around here (N.Wales).

If there was a vaccine it would make 'blind' treatment of Lyme disease a little more reassuring than just throwing antibiotics at you in the hope they have got it in time.

[GCW]

Silverdale is known to be Lyme country, I've had loads of ticks and I wouldn't keep taking doxycycline every 5 minutes- I'd get some treatment if I felt unwell after a tick bite.

Essentially, try to get them out ASAP using a non irritating method (I still swear by the TickTwister) and seek hepl if you are unwell afterwards.  The rash is highly suggestive for Lyme's, but don't think you haven't got Lyme's just because a rash is absent.

And don't forget, it's still a fairly low profile disease and a lot of Doctors will look at you blankly if you mention it.

[tomtom]

Hmm.. I was bitten by something in my hip on Sat (I think - happened after being sat down on grassy field/park for a bit) and it swelled up loads (only just gone down now).. Big red rash, red centre c. 8-9 cm across and lighter red expanse up to 15cm across.. I've been feeling mildly flu ish since then - but put it down to general run down ness and the extra antihistamines I was necking to get the bite swelling down.. (I tend to react nastily to bites..)..
Worth getting this looked at? The bizare thing is I was bitten in Hackney! Hence my non tick thoughts until now, and when I started googling lyme disease rashes!...

[Fultonius]

Better safe than sorry! Take some info in with you - the GP will probably not like you telling him what you think might be wrong with you but I think it's worth pushing it!

[Muenchener]

A quick caution: ff you're planning on climbing in the Frankenjura or the Czech republic and get bitten by ticks, there's also the possibility of Tick Borne Encephalitis. 

... or the Bavarian Alps (Berchtesgaden etc) ... I don't know where else in the Alps because the risk area maps I've seen only cover Germany, but I would carefully check my legs after any thrashing through forests in the lower foothills of the eastern Alps on hut approaches etc.

[jmews]

I'm also dealing with this as the moment, but in the U.S.

About three weeks ago I was out bouldering, and was bitten - I think. I had itchiness, but no obvious bite sites. We found several ticks that day, though, and when arriving home I found a (known Lyme's carrying species) tick crawling out of my armpit.

Last week I began to feel unwell - fevers, cold sweats, headaches and dizziness. So yesterday I started taking the antibiotics - 100mg Doxycycline twice a day. I do not like taking this drug, being reasonably paranoid about side effects etc., and am not looking forward to the next three weeks. I guess it is better to play it safe, though.

[Blunk]

Much better to play it safe jmews, I am currently treating a patient who had Lyme 20+ years ago and it ruined her health. It's well worth suffering through the 3 weeks of antibiotics now.

[tomtom]

Off to the docs this morning... After another night of fever. 

[Falling Down]

Fingers crossed mate...

[tomtom]

Cheers FD.. Doctor was very understanding - and offered me a dosing of AB's... but also pointed out that my vital signs were fairly normal and that it might be worth waiting until the other side of the weekend where if it were a normal(?) viral infection it would have passed by then. I figured it was worth waiting as I'd rather not pump myself full of the (fairly large as I understand it) dose of AB's if nothings wrong...

[jmews]

Hope you're doing ok now the weekend is nearly over.

It turns out that my body does not like doxycycline at all. Rash, fever, stomach cramps, headaches. So I stopped taking it yesterday. Going to see how I feel over the next week, and then make a decision.

[tomtom]

Thanks for asking - its looking good as I've had 1 and a half nights really good sleep - and feel pretty normal today (even went gently climbing) so I'm not going back to the docs unless I start to feel worse...

It turns out that my body does not like doxycycline at all. Rash, fever, stomach cramps, headaches. So I stopped taking it yesterday. Going to see how I feel over the next week, and then make a decision.

Eek... I have an allergic reaction to Amoxycillin (sp?) which was discovered after a different insect bite became infected in the early 90's. My whole body apart from face and hands was covered in hives... the doctor was gobsmacked! A change of AB and some antihistamines to take the hives down and I was fine.. Maybe you dont like that AB? I'd try seeing the doctor again..

This AB allergy causes me all sorts of problems from time to time... I was bitten by a spider (or something) in the States in 03, and my whole leg ballooned.. In the emergency room, when I mentioned I was allergic to Amoxycillin they looked concerned (as were about to pump me full of it I think) so took a sample of my blood and tested 3 different ABs against whatever was doing it (so they told me) and after 2 hours hooked me up to IV AB's... in 9 hours I was fine!! Aside from having to spend the night in hospital...

[SA Chris]

I still swear by the TickTwister)

Worth getting a few and keeping them in pack, car etc.

Burning off, removing by hand, and covering in vaseline are all very bad ideas apparently.

And once you have removed it and killed it it's apparently a good idea to keep the dead tick in a piece of tissue paper as it may help in identifying if you have got lyme's or not when should you develop symptoms.

Friend of mine got it after getting bitten by a deer tick on Rum (the island, not what the tick was drinking) and she was laid out for a few months and took over a year to recover.