How long can you have Lyme disease without knowing it?

If you have been bitten by a Lyme infected tick, you might not even know. Can you have Lyme disease without knowing it?

There are three distinct stages of Lyme disease. When a person is bitten by an infected deer tick, they are up against time for treating their infection. How long can you have Lyme disease without knowing it?

Lyme Disease Infection Timeline

Infection time: 24 to 36 Hours
In order to be infected by a tick bite, a tick must be attached for at least 24 hours. If you think that’s a long time to not even know you have a tick on you, think again. Nymph ticks are so tiny, they often go unnoticed. That’s why they are the biggest spreaders of Lyme infection. It’s easy for a person or a pet to have a tick attached for 24 to 36 hours unnoticed. Some people never know they had a tick attached at all!

Early symptoms begin to show: Within 30 Days
If a person shows early symptoms of Lyme, it usually occurs within 30 days after infection. The problem is, many never show symptoms, or overlook their symptoms. People, who work outdoors, or spend lots of recreational time outdoors, should be mindful of potential early onset Lyme disease symptoms. Fever, fatigue, and body aches are among the most common symptoms, as well as a bull’s eye rash around the tick bite. If symptoms do not occur within 30 days, they can be more severe. Early Lyme disease can be cured with doxycycline. The length of treatment will depend on whether the infection is localized or has begun to spread through the body.

Late symptoms occur: 6 Months to 3 Years – or Longer
Can you have Lyme disease without knowing it? Lyme disease infection can go unnoticed for three years or longer. Symptoms are so varied, that many people never know they have it until it begins to make them very sick. Yes, you can have Lyme disease for years without knowing it! Late disseminated Lyme disease cannot be cured. This late stage of Lyme can show symptoms relating to other diseases, like dementia or Rheumatoid arthritis. Some with chronic Lyme can receive successful symptom treatment. Others spend years trying to get their symptoms under control. Some seek conventional medicine. Others will try holistic treatments.

See more tick and Lyme disease questions and answers:

Lyme Prevention is Possible

There is no Lyme disease vaccine, but there are methods of prevention. Wearing long sleeves and pants when hiking, camping, or working will offer personal tick protection. Wearing clothes treated with permethrin can also help keep ticks away.

tick control Acton MA At home Lyme prevention is available through reputable tick control companies. Professional Central Mass tick control companies will offer a choice between repellents and insecticides. Repellents will keep ticks away from your yard. EPA-registered pesticides will eliminate ticks. Repellents and insecticides are available in time-released formulas. Time released tick control will give you about two or three weeks of protection at home.

Don’t forget to protect your home year-round. Tick tubes offer extended tick control through the fall and winter. Employing this kind of tick control will result in less ticks on your property in the springtime.

Dave Macchia, tick control enthusiast — Dave Macchia, Central Mass tick control enthusiast

3 Stages of Lyme Disease

The CDC estimates that there are up to 300,000 cases of confirmed and unconfirmed Lyme disease infections per year in the United States.

Did you know that there are three stages of Lyme disease? Each stage happens after a particular passage of time following a bite from an infected tick. Though there are about 30,000 confirmed cases of Lyme in the U.S. each year, experts predict that most cases go unconfirmed. Lyme can be difficult to diagnose. Lyme can also lie dormant in the first two stages, only showing symptoms months or years after a tick bite.

What are the 3 stages of Lyme disease?

Stage 1: Early Localized Lyme

In this stage of infection, patients might notice a Lyme rash, often in the shape of a very defined bull’s eye. This stage occurs within 30 days after a bite from an infected black-legged tick. Other symptoms in this stage might be fever, chills, fatigue, headache, joint pain, and sore throat. Early localized Lyme is treated with a round of strong antibiotics. Most often, early localized Lyme disease can be cured with doxycycline.

Stage 2: Early Disseminated Lyme

This stage of Lyme disease happens weeks or months after a bite from an infected deer tick. Symptoms in this stage are a bit different and can be more sever than in stage one, because the bacteria is spreading through the body. In stage two, patients can experience fever, conjunctivitis, memory loss, interrupted sleep, mood swings, and numbness in extremities. Sufferers might feel as if they have a severe case of flu in stage two.

Stage 3: Late Disseminated Lyme

Stage three of Lyme disease is also known as chronic Lyme. If Lyme is left untreated or is not treated effectively in early stages, the disease becomes chronic. Sufferers of chronic Lyme are left to treat various symptoms for life, and often find it difficult to receive proper medical care. Some doctors even doubt the existence of chronic Lyme, leaving sufferers feeling alienated. Specialized care is a must in this stage of Lyme disease. Some of the symptoms are chronic arthritis, irregular heart rhythm, brain infection, seizures, and skin ailments. Chronic Lyme has been mistaken for Alzheimer’s in some very prominent cases, like that of Kris Kristofferson.

Other Lyme disease facts:

It is estimated that about 70% of Lyme infections result in a bull’s eye rash. That number is even less for kids at 10%.
Dogs can contract Lyme disease, and most times remain uncured for life.
Lyme disease in teens can cause suicidal tendencies.
Early detection and treatment are the keys to preventing chronic infection.

Central Mass residents must protect themselves from the threat of infection with effective tick control.

Dave Macchia mosquito conrol and tick control enthusiast — Dave Macchia
Central Mass enthusiast for effective season-long mosquito and tick protection

Professional Central Mass tick control is our best ally in the fight against tick bites, and it is available all year long. In the spring, summer, and fall, barrier tick spray is an essential part of Lyme disease prevention. In the late fall and through the winter, tick tubes will carry on the fight, decreasing the number of ticks that will emerge in the spring.

Tag: 3 stages of Lyme disease