Signs and symptoms
Signs and symptoms
Symptoms of bites and stings usually continue for a few days and then improve, but if discharge or weeping is seen a few days after the initial bite this can be a sign of infection, and the person may be eligible to be treated under the Pharmacy First scheme.
Don’t get ticked off
Customers – and their pets – whose summer activities involve spending time in heathland, moors or meadows are at risk of picking up ticks.
A member of the spider family, ticks attach themselves to passing animals and humans to feed on their blood. Not only unpleasant, ticks can also transmit diseases, including Lyme disease – a serious infection with symptoms including a circular red rash, headaches, muscle and joint pain, and disturbances of sight, hearing, digestive system and sleep.
The best way to avoid ticks is to wear long sleeves and trousers outdoors, use an insect repellent effective against ticks (containing DEET), keep to pathways and remove any ticks as soon as possible with a simple tick-removing tool, available from the pharmacy.
Pharmacy teams can also advise customers who are holidaying in much of Europe, where tick-borne encephalitis is rife, that it is worth getting vaccinated at their local travel health clinic to protect themselves against this disease. For more information, visit: travelhealthpro.org.uk/news/738/changes-to-the-country-information-pages-tick-borne-encephalitis.