Matt Dawson: I had to have heart surgery after a tick bite

While former england rugby participant matt dawson become bitten by means of a tick in a london park early ultimate 12 months, it prompted a bacterial infection to spread thru his body.
"i had two days where i felt lousy. Very feverish, on the couch, crashed out," he said.
Finally he went to health center where he was recognized with lyme ailment:
"it was a absolutely horrifying time for me and my circle of relatives. This kind of tiny creature caused me to grow to be wanting heart surgical operation."
Lyme ailment is a bacterial contamination, handed directly to humans by using infected ticks.
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Even as it's far tough to estimate the total wide variety of united kingdom instances, they are understood to have multiplied extra than fourfold within the beyond 10 years.
The peak season is april to october, although they are lively all yr round.
How can i spot the signs and symptoms of lyme sickness?In round two-thirds of cases, a distinctive rash called erythema migrans will develop within the days to weeks that follow the tick bite
It is regularly shaped like a bullseye, but no longer in all cases, and some people will have numerous in place of one
Flu-like signs and symptoms are every other strong indicator of lyme disease
Facial palsy is common in kids
Others may additionally revel in tingling or numbness in parts of the body and, rarely, intense headaches
In case you get these signs and feature also been bitten with the aid of a tick - or been out in a tick hotspot - then it is well worth talking for your physician
If left untreated, early localised lyme can attack the worried machine and motive debilitating neurological problems
But, in case you acquire set off antibiotic remedy, it could successfully treat the sickness and prevent in addition contamination
Supply: bbc consider me i am a physician
A international cup winner in 2003, dawson played seventy seven instances for england and made seven appearances for the british and irish lions.
Matt said he became floored by using his prognosis: "i'd heard of lyme disease before. It became something i'd continually related to locations abroad, on the continent, in america, anyplace there were deer.
"there may be no manner that i would've walked via a timber or a forest with my youngsters and gone lower back home and idea, 'right, i will simply check for a few ticks just to make certain everything is fine'. I simply wouldn't have idea of that."
How you get lyme disease
Ticks may be found in areas with deep or overgrown flowers.
They're not unusual in wooded area and heath areas, however can also be located in gardens or parks.
Individuals who hike and camp in such locations are susceptible to getting bitten.
Ticks do not soar or fly, but climb on in your garments or skin if you brush against something they're on. They then chew into the skin and start to feed to your blood.
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It is notion simplest a small share of ticks convey the bacteria that motive lyme disease, so being bitten doesn't suggest you may surely be inflamed.
Pets can also carry ticks home in their fur.
Source: nhs selections
Matt dawson has now joined forces with the massive tick assignment, which appears to raise awareness about the dangers of ticks and tick-borne disorder within the uk.
Tied to researchers at college of bristol, the task has conducted the largest ever look at of ticks in dogs. They studied 14,000 puppies from 1,400 vets across the UK and discovered almost one-0.33 had been sporting a tick.
Tv presenter and naturalist chris packham is operating with the assignment to elevate focus among puppy proprietors and vets:
"it's far sincerely vital that pet owners recognize how they can deal with their pets for ticks and reduce the chance of the similarly spread of those terrible, debilitating and doubtlessly dangerous sicknesses to the United Kingdom," he said.
The journey to healing
After a couple of heart operations and 18 months of treatment, matt now not has the sickness.
But it still influences his life: "i'm still on remedy and its going to take a variety of time for the heart to completely recover.
"this isn't always something that ought to be checked out like, 'oh it's handiest a tick, a tick is a bit like a flea, its first-rate!'," he said.
"those ticks deliver some genuinely quite powerful, severe bacteria and they can cause you loads of problems. Elevating attention of them is vital."