Post-bite: 30-day symptom watch

01

After any tick bite, watch for symptoms for 30 days. Most early tickborne illness shows up between 3 and 30 days post-bite, with an average of about 7 days.

02

Watch for:

03

An expanding red rash at or near the bite site, sometimes (but not always) with a central clearing or bullseye pattern. This is erythema migrans, the hallmark of Lyme. The rash can reach 4-12 inches across.

04

Multiple rashes elsewhere on the body (disseminated Lyme).

05

Fever, chills, headache, fatigue, muscle and joint aches, swollen lymph nodes - these can occur with or without the rash and are characteristic of anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, RMSF, and other bacterial tick illnesses.

06

A small itchy bump at the bite site that goes away in 1-2 days is a normal reaction to the bite, not Lyme.

07

Note the date and location of the bite. If anything in the list above appears, see a clinician promptly and tell them about the tick.