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A tick bite may have serious health consequences. These arachnids carry, among others, Lyme disease. Tick-borne encephalitis may also develop after contact with their saliva. The symptoms of this disease are confusingly similar to those seen in patients infected with COVID-19.
- Both the initial symptoms of TBE and those that occur in the advanced form of the disease also match the symptoms of COVID-19 and long covid
- The list includes, among others headache, fever or weakness – in the first stage of the disease
- Later, neurological symptoms may also occur, including fatigue, memory or mood disorders, also typical for long covid
- More information can be found on the Onet homepage.
Tick or COVID-19? The symptoms are very similar
Tick-borne encephalitis is a viral disease that is transmitted through these arachnids. The virus reservoirs can be wild animals and birds, but also farm cattle. Infection with tick-borne encephalitis occurs as a result of a bite – the virus is transmitted through the saliva of the arachnid. But not only. Infection can also occur by eating unpasteurized milk or when the tick is pulled out with a cut hand.
- See also: Symptoms that predict long COVID-19. These people are most at risk
If the arachnid was a carrier of the virus, the infected person develops symptoms. It is mainly headache, fever, nausea and vomiting, pain in muscles and joints, as well as catarrh of the upper respiratory tract. These are the symptoms that also characterize COVID-19 infection. Therefore, in the early stages of both diseases, it is easy to confuse them.
Have COVID-19 behind you? Perform an e-packet of health assessments after SARS-CoV-2 infection. The research includes, inter alia, complete blood count, CPR, creatinine, liver tests and IgG antibodies.
The course of tick-borne encephalitis. Complications are possible
The virus that causes TBE is intubated for between 2 and 28 days. During this time, it multiplies in cells, moving to the lymph nodes and organs. After the intubation period, some patients develop the first symptoms of infection. Tick-borne encephalitis can go through without any symptoms, and most often the patient only experiences symptoms such as headache or fever. They usually go away on their own, but this does not always happen.
– If viruses enter the central nervous system, a second phase of the disease may develop with symptoms of spinal cord meningitis or encephalomyelitis shortly after the symptoms of the infection have cleared. In most cases, tick-borne encephalitis is mild, but there may be complications with permanent consequences, warn specialists from the National Institute of Public Health-National Institute of Hygiene (NIPH-PZH).
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This first, mild phase of infection lasts from 1 to 9 days. After it, the sick person recovers or develops complications when viruses enter the nervous system. In turn, neurological symptoms may persist for several months.
At this stage, the patient may experience:
- sudden jump of fever (about 40 degrees),
- change of mood
- nagging headaches and dizziness,
- photophobia, nystagmus, double vision,
- hearing loss
- drop in blood pressure
- paresis,
- disturbances of consciousness.
Long covid and complications after tick-borne encephalitis. Lots of similarities
The similarities between TBE and COVID-19 do not end in the early stages of both diseases. Also, subsequent complications after infection can be misdiagnosed.
Some patients infected with COVID-19 have symptoms of the so-called long covid. These are ailments that largely involve problems of a neurological nature. The same is true of the complications of TBE, which occur in some infected people.
Among the most common ailments in people with tick-borne encephalitis, the following are distinguished:
- paralysis of the spinal and cranial nerves,
- sensory disturbances,
- limb paralysis,
- disorders of cognitive processes (including attention, memory, association),
- mental disorders (e.g. depressive and neurasthenic syndromes, characteropathies),
- vegetative disorders (nervous excitability, fatigue, explosiveness, mood swings, sweating).
As we read on the “Vaccinations Info” page, these changes may be permanent.
– Permanent neurological complications occur in 35–58% of patients. patients with central nervous system involvement, and in about 1/100 patients the infection is fatal.
Also, COVID-19 infection can lead to neurological complications that persist long after the coronavirus is contracted. These include:
- brain fog, characterized by impaired concentration, memory, attention,
- mental disorders, including depression and anxiety, as well as insomnia,
- fatigue, mood changes
- excessive sweating.
As you can see, it’s easy to confuse the symptoms of TBE and COVID-19. To verify which virus we are dealing with, it is therefore necessary, for example, to determine the antibodies. This way, you can find out whether the patient has been exposed to a tick-borne virus or SARS-CoV-2.
Also read:
- American paediatricians: face masks in schools for everyone
- Will the fourth wave be an “epidemic of young people”? Disturbing data about Delta
- How long does immunity last after COVID-19? The town where the Italian “patient zero” died was examined
- What will be the fourth wave? “We are not in danger of a collapse of the health service”
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