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Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever Home > Prevention and Control
Prevention and Control
Limiting exposure to ticks is the most effective way
to reduce the likelihood of Rocky Mountain spotted fever
infection. In persons exposed to tick-infested habitats,
prompt careful inspection and removal of crawling or
attached ticks is an important method of preventing
disease. It may take extended attachment time before
organisms are transmitted from the tick to the host.
Currently, no licensed vaccine is available for prevention
of Rocky Mountain spotted fever.
Personal Protection Against Ticks
It is unreasonable to assume that a person can completely
eliminate activities that may result in tick exposure.
Therefore, prevention measures should emphasize personal
protection when exposed to natural areas where ticks
are present:
- Wear light-colored clothing which allows you to
see ticks that are crawling on your clothing.
- Tuck your pants legs into your socks so that ticks cannot
crawl up the inside of your pants legs.
- Apply repellents to discourage tick attachment. Repellents containing
permethrin can be sprayed on boots and clothing, and
will last for several days. Repellents containing
DEET (n, n-diethyl-m-toluamide) can be applied to
the skin, but will last only a few hours before reapplication
is necessary. Use DEET with caution on children. Application
of large amounts of DEET on children has been associated
with adverse reactions.
- Conduct a body check upon return from potentially
tick-infested areas by searching your entire body for ticks. Use a
hand-held or full-length mirror to view all parts of your body. Remove
any tick you find on your body.
- Parents should check their children for ticks, especially
in the hair, when returning from potentially tick-infested
areas. Ticks may also be carried into the household
on clothing and pets and only attached later so both
should be examined carefully to exclude the ticks.
To Remove Attached Ticks:
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| Removal of an embedded
tick using fine-tipped tweezers |
1. Use fine-tipped tweezers or notched tick extractor,
and protect your fingers with a tissue, paper towel,
or latex gloves (see figure). Persons should avoid
removing ticks with bare hands.
2. Grasp the tick as close to the skin surface as
possible and pull upward with steady, even pressure.
Do not twist or jerk the tick; this may cause the
mouthparts to break off and remain in the skin. (If
this happens, remove mouthparts with tweezers. Consult
your health care provider if illness occurs.)
3. After removing the tick, thoroughly disinfect
the bite site and wash your hands with soap and water.
4. Do not squeeze, crush, or puncture the body of
the tick because its fluids may contain infectious
organisms. Skin accidentally exposed to tick fluids
can be disinfected with iodine scrub, rubbing alcohol,
or water containing detergents.
5. Save the tick for identification in case you become
ill. This may help your doctor make an accurate diagnosis.
Place the tick in a sealable plastic bag and put it
in your freezer. Write the date of the bite on a piece
of paper with a pencil and place it in the bag.
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| Tick Removal |
Folklore Remedies Don't Work!
Folklore remedies, such as the use of petroleum jelly or hot matches,
do little to encourage a tick to detach from skin. In
fact, they may make matters worse by irritating the
tick and stimulating it to release additional saliva
or regurgitate gut contents, increasing the chances
of transmitting the pathogen. These methods of tick
removal should be avoided.
Tick Control
Strategies to reduce populations of vector ticks through
area-wide application of acaricides (chemicals that
will kill ticks and mites) and control of tick habitats
(e.g., leaf litter and brush) have been effective in
small-scale trials. New methods being developed include
applying acaricides to animal hosts by using baited
tubes, boxes, and feeding stations in areas where these
pathogens are endemic. Biological control with fungi,
parasitic nematodes, and parasitic wasps may play supportive
roles in integrated tick control efforts. Community-based,
integrated, tick-management strategies may prove to
be an effective public health response to reduce the
incidence of tick-borne infections. However, limiting
exposure to ticks is currently the most effective method
of prevention of tick-transmitted diseases.
Date last reviewed: 05/20/2005 |
