Urgent Care & Walk-In Clinic for Tick Bites & Lyme Disease Treatment in Phoenixville, PA

At AFC Urgent Care & Walk-in Clinic in Phoenixville our providers are very familiar with tick-borne Lyme disease. Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne illness in the United States. Lyme disease is transmitted by the black-legged tick also known as the deer tick shown below.

Here are a few things that you should know about ticks and Lyme disease:

What is Lyme disease?

Lyme disease is a bacterial illness that can cause severe and long-lasting health issues affecting the skin, joints, heart, and nervous system. Normally found on deer, mice, and other small rodents, deer ticks feed off the blood of their hosts. However, some ticks attach to unsuspecting humans and/or their pets and can transmit Lyme disease.

Ticks are most commonly found outdoors in:

• Warmer weather from April through September
• Moist environments
• Bushy areas
• Leaf piles
• Wooded areas
• High grass

Ways to decrease your risk of tick bites:

• Avoid areas where ticks are most abundant
• Walk in the center of trails
• Use a tick repellent containing DEET
• Wear clothing that covers the skin as much as possible when going outside
• Examine your cloths and pets for ticks once indoors
• Put clothes in a dryer set on the hottest setting
• Use a mirror to conduct a full-body tick check including:
  • Under the arms
  • Behind the ears
  • In the scalp
  • Inside the belly button
  • On the back of the knees
  • In and around all body hair
  • Between the legs
  • Around the waist
• Shower within 2 hours of being outdoors

What to do if you find a tick on your body or notice a tick bite:

• Use a tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin surface as possible
• Pull the tick straight up applying gentle steady pressure

Disinfect the skin and wash your hands thoroughly

The most common symptoms of Lyme disease include:

• Bulls-eye rash (up to 30 days following tick bite)
• Flu-like symptoms
• Fever
• Extreme fatigue
• Chills
• Headache
• Muscle aches

More severe symptoms of Lyme disease include:

• Difficulty controlling face muscles
• Numbness or tingling in hands, feet, and/or back
• Pain and weakness in arms and legs
• Swelling and pain in joints

Methods of diagnosis include:

• Clinical history and examination of symptoms
• Blood tests

Treatment:

In most cases, Lyme diseases can be treated with antibiotics. However, early recognition and treatment of this disease is important to decrease the risk of serious complications. The duration of tick attachment is important to assess the risk of transmission of illness.

For ticks attached for more than 36 hours the provider may prescribe a prophylactic dose of an antibiotic within 72 hours of the tick removal to decrease your risk of developing Lyme disease. If a blood test confirms Lyme disease the provider may prescribe an antibiotic up to 4 weeks. The faster the diagnosis the quicker and more efficient the treatment will be.

AFC Urgent Care in Phoenixville offers a great option for treatment. All our providers have practiced for many years in the northeast and are very knowledgeable in the treatment of Lyme disease. We are also open 7 days a week with no appointment necessary to help you with all your medical needs including tick, bee, mosquito and other insect bites!

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