Removal · field guidance
Tick paralysis recognition (ascending weakness)
Ascending weakness starting in the legs over hours to days, especially in children, may be tick paralysis from a still-attached tick.
Steps
schema.org/HowTo01
Suspect tick paralysis with progressive weakness in the legs that climbs to the trunk and arms over hours to days.
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Sensation is preserved; this is purely motor weakness.
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The patient or caregiver may not have noticed the tick — it is often hidden in the scalp or behind an ear.
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Without removal, weakness can progress to respiratory failure.
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Go to the emergency department; do not wait to see if it improves on its own.
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Removal of the tick reverses symptoms within hours; antibiotics are not needed.
Diseases this can help prevent
3 known