As spring rolls into summer, more outside work picks up, and the chances of being exposed to tick-borne illnesses increase. If you have employees who work outdoors in heavily wooded or grassy areas, give your workers valuable information on common tick-borne illnesses—as well as the ways to prevent getting bitten.
Lyme disease is the most recognized of the tick-borne illnesses. The disease is transmitted by ticks that have fed on certain deer and mice. These ticks are found throughout the United States. The peak tick season is May through September. The areas of highest risk are the Northeast, Great Lakes Region, and an area in Northern California.
Current scientific estimates indicate that the disease is transmitted after the tick has attached to the individual for 6 to 24 hours. Between 15 and 30 percent of ticks are infected. The longer the tick is attached, the greater the probability of infection.
Early signs and symptoms of Lyme disease, 3 to 32 days after the tick bite, include a characteristic "bulls-eye" (red, circular) rash at the site of the tick bite (the most common sites are scalp, groin, and armpits), fever, headache, fatigue, muscle and joint pain, and swollen glands. Later signs and symptoms of Lyme disease, 6 to 9 months after the tick bite, include weak facial muscles, stiff neck, irregular heartbeat, numbness, loss of appetite, dizziness, persistent fatigue, and double vision.
Babesiosis is transmitted by ticks that typically have been infected by rodents, cattle, or wild animals. These ticks are most commonly found in the Northeastern, Pacific Coast, and Upper Midwestern portions of the United States.
The signs and symptoms, which begin 1 to 9 weeks after the tick bite, include fever, chills, profuse sweating, fatigue, dark-colored urine, nausea, abdominal pain, low blood count, and enlarged spleen.
Ehrlichiosis is transmitted by deer ticks and the Lone Star tick. Peak cases are from May to July and October to December. The first known cases were described in 1987. Reported incidences have occurred in individuals over 40 years old. The most prevalent areas of the country are the Southern and Northeastern areas of the United States.
The early signs and symptoms, which occur 5 to 11 days after the tick bite, include rapid onset of fever, acute headache, nonspecific rash (usually lower part of body), shaking chills, generalized fatigue, muscle and joint pain, cough, and vomiting. Individuals can become very sick, with up to 54 percent hospitalized.
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever is another tick-borne illness transmitted by the American dog tick and the Rocky Mountain wood tick. The states with the highest incidence of the illness are North Carolina and Oklahoma. Fifty percent of the infections occur in the South-Atlantic region of the United States. The Pacific and West-South Central regions also have cases. More than 90 percent of the patients with Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever are infected between April and September.
The early signs and symptoms, which occur 3 to 4 days after the bite, include fever, nausea, severe headache, muscle pain, and lack of appetite. The later signs and symptoms include rash (wrists, forearms, and ankles), abdominal pain, joint pain, and diarrhea.
Great news! BLR’s renowned Safety.BLR.com® website now has even more timesaving features. Take our no-cost site tour! Or better yet, try it at no cost or obligation for a full 2 weeks.
Train your workers to follow these steps to reduce the likelihood of being bitten by a tick:
- Encourage workers to wear light-colored clothing so ticks can be spotted easily.
- Wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants.
- Tuck pant legs into high boots. Tape area where pants and socks meet.
- Wear hats.
- Spray clothing and skin with repellants. Use Permethrin for the clothes and DEET for the skin.
- Wash clothes in high temperatures after working outdoors.
- Examine skin closely for ticks.
- Check body parts that bend:
- Back of the knee
- Between fingers and toes
- Under the arms
- Check areas where clothing presses against your skin:
- Area beneath underwear elastic
- Belt area
- Neckline
- Check other common areas where ticks hide:
- Belly button
- Ears or the area around them
- Hairline
- Top of head
Your one-stop safety management resource, available 24/7. Go here to take a no-cost site tour or here to try it in your own office!
Describe to your workers the proper way to remove a tick and deal with the situation if they find any on their skin.
- If a tick is present, use a fine-point tweezers to grasp the tick at the place of attachment, as close to the skin as possible. Gently apply a firm, steady pressure until the tick releases. Don’t jerk, twist, squash, or squeeze the tick. Wait for it to release.
- Clean the wound and tweezers with antiseptic. Burning the tick with a cigarette or using petroleum jelly or nail polish to smother it are not effective methods.
- Watch the site of the bite and your general health for symptoms, which usually take several weeks to develop.
- Place the tick in a closed container, and take it to a local health department for identification.
Why It Matters
- Tick-borne diseases range from mild to debilitating.
- As such, they can increase expenses from days away from work and healthcare expenses.
- All of the above can be avoided by taking proper precautions when working outdoors during tick season.