Mechanical tools for the removal of Ixodes ricinus female ticks—differences of instruments and pulling or twisting?

Abstract

The fast and safe removal of ticks is of medical and veterinary importance since many tick-borne pathogens require time to be transmitted. In the past, many tools and applications were used to remove ticks from the skin of humans and pets. Choking the ticks by blocking their respiratory system with chemicals cannot be recommended due to the low respiratory rate of ticks. Mechanical devices to remove ticks are usually recommended; however, they vary with regard to their mechanism of seizing and holding the tick and in the way of extraction (pulling or twisting). In this study, five commercial tick removal devices with different mechanisms were tested on pets according to their practicability, injury of the mouthparts, and the idiosoma of female Ixodes ricinus ticks. Therefore, 22 veterinarians and four pet owners removed 596 ticks from various animals by using the different devices and filled in a questionnaire for each case. The tick species and instars were determined, and for the female I. ricinus ticks (n = 527) the condition of the mouthparts as well as the idiosoma was evaluated. Twisting of the female I. ricinus ticks reduced the force required for extraction, the adverse reaction of the animal and the time needed for removal. The device with a "V"-shaped slot which allows a grabbing of the mouthparts delivered the best results according to the condition of the mouthparts and the intactness of the female I. ricinus tick's body. Therefore, grabbing the mouthparts and twisting can be recommended for removal of I. ricinus females from pets.

Methods to Prevent Tick Bites and Lyme Disease

“…50 Usually, a tick check would be done after leaving a risk area, although it also is prudent to check for ticks that might be moving over clothing or skin while in tick habitats, although this would seem to be rarely done by exposed persons. 51 Removal of attached ticks is ideally done with fine-tipped, stiff, and angled forceps (tweezers) placed around the head of the tick as near as is possible to the skin, followed by a steady, upward pulling movement [52][53][54][55] (Fig. 1).…”

The importance of tick-borne diseases in public health

“…If this happens, the mouth-part should be removed with tweezers. Ducher et al [24] observed that rotation seems to require less force and though breaking of the hypostome was more frequent in this technique, the part left in the wound was shorter than after removal by pulling. They also remarked that less time is needed to extract female tick when rotation is used [24].…”

“…The experimental evidences to support the most suggested strategies of tick removal are still lacking [1]. For tick removal, a wide range of tools can be applied, including chemicals and mechanical treatment [24]. There are commercially available devices like tick tool, tick twister, tick nipper, tick key, pro ticked off [1].…”

“…They are not effective; what is more, they can lead to increased risk of illness as they can provoke regurgitation and transmission pathogens to human body [1]. For the same reason, squeezing during mechanical removal should be avoided as well as burning, because any stress (like heat) might induce regurgitation and release of pathogens into the wound [1,24]. Roupakias et al [1] described in few steps the most commonly recommended and successful method of tick removal until now.…”

Examen des méthodes visant à prévenir et à réduire le risque de contracter la maladie de Lyme

“…Pour retirer une tique il est préférable d'utiliser des pinces à épiler avec des extrémités rigides et en angle placées près de la tête de la tique et aussi près de la peau que possible, et de tirer en effectuant un mouvement vers le haut (34,37,38,39)…”