This morning, Dr. Stephen MacMahon attended Grand Rounds at Westmead hospital. This is usually his "sleeping session" and I thought the only thing that would keep him awake is listening to Ron Clark describing his methods of colonoscopy using RC  gliders! On a serious note, my attention was drawn to a heated discussion about a man recently deceased, who was bitten by a tick whilst filming "Home and Away" at, you guessed it; down at WRCS last year. As a result of this tick bite, he developed a paralysed finger which rapidly disseminated into a multi-paralytic disease which he succumbed to.  The provisional diagnosis was Lyme disease which is a tick born disease identified mainly in the northern states of America. The diagnostic tests disproved this however, his vigilant wife sent samples to America and Europe which have confirmed the diagnosis. The Dept. of Agriculture have firmly insisted that our ticks do not carry this disease and the jury is out until a further autopsy has been carried out. There have been reported cases in the literature from the Taree district.  Irrespective of whether this is confirmed, this little critter was living in the vicinity of our field and had catastrophic effects for this poor gent. My point is that we will need to take precautions during the Spring and early Summer when ticks are prevalent and particularly virulent.

BEST PRECAUTIONS

NEVER go into the bush unless fully protected with with long sleeves and long trousers. It is recommended that you liberally spray Aerogard or the like on your clothes and exposed parts before entering the bush. If you receive a tick bite, get rid of it ASAP. Serious symptoms to look for;  include pain in regional lymph nodes, fever, any paralysis or a sore with a widening or spread erythematous margin (red perimeter). If any symptoms like these occur, seek urgent medical attention as soon as possible.
 
For those interested; Google "Lyme Disease".