A new method of fighting ticks that transmit Lyme disease and tick-borne encephalitis (encephalitis) has emerged in the Czech Republic. The production of plastic cards to fight them began there.
The card is equipped with a magnifying glass that allows you to carefully examine the place where the tick entered the human body and a special device for its removal.
The sooner the parasite is pulled out, the lower the chances of contracting TBE. These types of cards may soon appear in the wallets of many Europeans, alongside credit cards.
The tick that causes encephalitis has recently spread to almost the entire continent. According to statistical data, only in the Czech Republic about 600 cases are registered each year, sometimes with death. At the same time, this number has been growing rapidly in recent years. Similar problems – as experts emphasize – have Sweden, Austria and other European countries.
The tick looks for people not only in rural areas and forests. Today it can also be found in popular parks in European capitals. It is no coincidence that in Vienna or Prague, posters are hung in places of rest with appeals to be careful when organizing picnics in the bosom of nature.
Moreover, the area where ticks are present is increasing. While until recently it was believed that they cannot live above 600 meters above sea level, they are now found higher and higher in the mountains, such as in the Slovak High Tatras. (PAP)