The principle of shingles in clothes and repellents: how to protect the child from ticks

In Belarus, with the arrival of autumn, the tick activity season continues, and children, because of their love of playing in nature, remain in the main risk group for Lyme-borreliosis. On September 9, the head of the organizational and methodological department of the City Children's Infectious Clinical Hospital Alina Savenko told reporters, the correspondent of the Minsk-Novosti agency reports.

Photo is illustrative, magnific.com

- The parasite on the way to the skin of a child has the first frontier - clothing. There is a very simple and effective means of protection - to dress children for a walk on the principle of shingles (laying). Pants must be tucked into socks, and a shirt or sweater into pants or tights. Cuffs should fit tightly to the wrists. The head must be protected with a scarf, a hat or a hat, Savenko said.

She stressed that traditional methods (such as lubricating the skin with clove oil) do not replace full protection:

- Use repellents. It is better to buy them in pharmacies and strictly follow the instructions. Apply the product on the skin or clothing as recommended by the manufacturer.

According to the specialist, the most reliable method of preventing tick-borne infections is a thorough examination of the skin after a walk.

- Ticks choose places with delicate skin, where it is warm, dry and there is no wind: the area behind the ears, cervical folds, axillary troughs, inguinal region, hamstrings and interfinal spaces, Savenko listed.

The doctor paid special attention to the examination of the scalp, especially in girls, and shared a case from practice:

- The ambulance brought to the hospital a girl from the dacha with suspected pneumonia. The diagnosis was confirmed and hospitalization was required. In our reception department, an inspection of all incoming children for lice and bites is mandatory. The girl had very intricate braids with colored ribbons, with which she walked half a year. When we found them, we found a large, well-inflated mite that had been sitting there for a couple of days. If your child is out of town, examine their head every day.

The doctor said that when the tick sucked, the main thing is not to panic. If you can and have special devices, remove the insect yourself. Doubtful? Then delegate it to the medical professionals.

According to A. Savenko, the treatment of children in a medical institution is of key importance for two reasons. First, doctors will carefully remove the parasite. Secondly, they will prescribe the exact dosage of the antibiotic.

- In pediatrics, preventive doses of drugs are calculated strictly per kilogram of body weight, the speaker explained. Conventionally, half of your grandmother’s or a quarter of your father’s pill will not work for your child, as you can give him either a toxic or ineffective dose.

The expert added that many parents first take the extracted tick to the laboratory. However, it is not necessary to pass the parasite for research. That's an extra step.

- First, precious time will be lost. Secondly, a negative test result does not guarantee 100% that infection has not occurred. Similarly, a positive test does not mean that borrelia has become entrenched in the body, and the child will necessarily get sick. The main thing is to have time to take the antibiotic prophylaxis prescribed by the doctor in the first 72 hours after the bite.

According to the speaker, the point of emergency prevention is to pinpoint kill borrelia if it gets into the skin. To do this, a small dose of an antibiotic is used, which does not give a systemic toxic effect and pronounced side effects. When time is lost, treat developed Lyme-borreliosis (which threatens arthritis, neuroborreliosis and lymphocytoma) will have heavy course doses of drugs. At the same time, if for some reason prevention in the first three days was not carried out, parents need to take a wait-and-see attitude: monitor the general health of the child, pay attention to the appearance of weakness, chills, fever and muscle pain; it is important to monitor the site of the bite.

- If there is a small point on the skin or a part of the jaw apparatus of a tick resembling a splinter, then there is nothing wrong with this, Savenko said. - The main thing is not to paint the wound with green, iodine, Fucorcin or calamine. All these colors of the rainbow from the first aid kit only mask the problem. But when a red spot (ring-shaped erythema) appeared around the bite point, it is urgent to take the child to the pediatrician to prescribe a full therapeutic course of treatment.

According to the infectious disease specialist, the inaction of adults and the fascination with unreliable information from the Internet are the main enemies of the child’s health. After all, untreated borreliosis can recur years later.

- Once we were approached by a teenager who has been going to rheumatologists and cardiologists for a long time complaining of joint pain. We examined him and eventually found out that the cause is untreated borreliosis in childhood, Savenko warned.

The specialist urged adults to be critical of online advice:

- There is too much false information on the Internet that is frankly harmful. Trust only official, state sources of information and consult with medical practitioners. Remember: folk remedies can work only in tandem with proven antibiotic prophylaxis. In the case of an adult, we take responsibility for ourselves, but the health of the child lies entirely with the parents. Strictly follow the appointments of the pediatrician.