tick bite black salve - May 2014

tick bite - 3 year old

karinawickland

Message 1 of 5 , May 16 8:46 PM[-- Image: Frame1 --]



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Hello tick-literate people,

There is Lyme in our area.  Yesterday I found a tick on my 3
year old son's scalp.   Because it's my first tick sighting, I
don't have a lot to compare it to, but it was very small (1/2
of a sesame seed size) and very tenacious.  It was not burrowed
in but would not let go despite 10 minutes of firm tweezers
pulling upwards.  After trying to get it myself I proceeded to
the walk-in clinic, under the naive impression they might have
a tick removal kit.

The MD at the walk-in clinic used tweezers and obliterated the
tick - blood squirted out and it was totally mashed.  He did
remove the head intact.  We did not save it because he said
only ticks that are alive can be tested.  He also said they are
no longer testing ticks for Lyme anyways. (they being the CDC?)

My son's scalp shows NO sign of redness or swelling during or
after the bite.  We don't know how long it was there, he is in
the woods/grass/bushes frequently.

As a precaution the MD prescribed amoxicillin 150 mg tid for one
week. (He's 34 pounds)  I know from reading the archives that
this is underdosing from an ILADS perspective for prophylaxis.

My son is thriving and robust with no medical issues.  We have
weathered colds, flus, fevers and gastroentritis with nary a
drug.  He has had selective, limited vaccinations around 1.5
years old, none for the past 2 years.

After the tick removal I gave him Ledum 30 ch once, and he is
taking probiotics and extra D and A with the amox.  I've also
started drainage - unda 2 and chelidonium plex while he is
taking antibiotics.  Getting herbs into him is tricky, of
course.

I know from reading all the previous discussion that there is a
range of opinion on the issue of tick prophylaxis but I'm
hoping for guidance on a few issues, as this is likely not the
last tick we'll be dealing with.

1) is it reasonable to do the amoxicillin (in this case 150 mg
tid x 1 week for a 34 pound healthy child) or should it be
adjusted to more/longer.

2) is there any point in running a Lyme Western Blot 4 to 5
weeks after the antibiotics are done to determine if he was
exposed?

3) Does Igenex test dead ticks or only live ones?

4) For the future - if you remove a tick and then do careful
watching for fever/rash/pain signs, can you use amox (or doxy
in an adult) when those symptoms occur to eradicate the bug, or
are you already at risk for developing chronic Lyme at that
point?

5)  Is there a time frame for the careful watching with
naturopathic therapies - 1 or 2 months?

6) any great tick repellant recipes/essential oils?

I have a lyme nosode from PCHF on order FYI.

Thanks for any input.  I'm having a hard time deciding whether
I'm being too aggressive in this case or not aggressive
enough.

Karina Wickland, ND
Cobble Hill, BC

Stacey Raffety ND LAc

Message 2 of 5 , May 16 9:20 PM[-- Image: Frame2 --]



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Yes Igenex test dead ticks in fact they do not want you to send
live ticks. The bacterium migrates from the hind gut once the
tick bites up into the head. Thus testing the whole tick
especially the head is ideal.

Glad you have the Lyme nosodes coming. If he is asymptomatic and
you have treated then not doing a western blot is reasonable.
However if you want to know if your son was exposed for future
reference in case of relapse or future exposure differenciation
I would test now.

You can go to my web site for tick removal
info.  WWW.tigardholistic.com

I like bio-ud as a tic repellant. It has good research done and
is non toxic being made from wild tomatoes.

I would use the maximum antibiotic dose per weight that is safe.
The standard of care for Lyme is two weeks. I would teat with
naturopathic care for two months.

Stacey Raffety

Tigard oor

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID

Kathleen Riley

Message 3 of 5 , May 22 1:56 AM[-- Image: Frame3 --]



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Karina,

Are you able to see the site of the tick bite? If you can , I
recommend using a drawing salve until the site is no longer
visible. Research presented at a past ILADS conference
demonstrated live spirochetes at the bite site when it remains
inflamed, even if the bite was a year before. To prevent a
possible reservoir of Lyme, I have all my patients use a
drawing salve on the bite site until it is no longer visible.
This is in addition to using homeopathics and antimicrobials
for a minimum of 3 weeks and monitoring for symptoms for 3
months after the bite.  Earth Botanical Harvest's Herbal
Compound Ointment has been useful for extracting remnant mouth
parts. Patients have also successfully use old fashioned black
salve for this purpose.

Good luck

Kathleen Riley, ND

Newington, CT

karinawickland

May 22 4:36 PM[-- Image: Frame4 --]



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Thanks for chiming in Kathleen,

There is no sign at the tick bite site - I've checked the area
regularly and I'm not even sure where it was at this point.
I'm hoping that is a good sign.

Thank you for the information on drawing salves.  Great
information for next time.  Also since my first post I've had
reminders from a couple people off-line (thank you!) of Dr.
Ernie Murakami's centre here in BC.  He has a video
demonstrating safer tick removal - one with
xylocaine/adrenaline bleb (in-office) and one "straw and knot":

http://www.murakamicentreforlyme.org/Removing%20Ticks.htm

Thanks again,

Karina Wickland, ND
Cobble Hill, BC

drdeanna

Message 5 of 5 , May 22 6:09 PM[-- Image: Frame5 --]



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Can we get a compination xylocaine/adrenaline in the US?
Deanna Berman, ND, CM