How to properly remove a tick

With described video

Transcript

Transcript

(Music)

Close-up of a forearm with a tick attached.

Text on screen reads: “How to properly remove a tick”

A man stands in front of the mirror in a brightly-lit bathroom; he is inspecting and rubbing his forearm. There is a tiny tick attached to it.

NARRARTOR: If you find an attached tick on your body, here’s how to properly remove it.

The screen fades to white. Text on screen reads: “What You’ll Need.”

Fine-point tweezers and other tick removal tools appear on screen.

NARRARTOR: You will need clean tweezers, fine point ones work best. You can also use other tick removal tools, but we'll show you how to remove a tick with tweezers, a common household item.

The other tools disappear leaving only the tweezers. A bar of soap and an alcohol-based sanitizer appear next to the fine-point tweezers.

NARRARTOR:  You also need soap and water, or alcohol-based sanitizer.

The man is standing in the bathroom. Text on screen reads: “Step-by-step Removal”.  The man opens the bathroom drawer to retrieve the fine-point tweezers. A close up of the arm shows the tick being grasped at the neck by the fine-point tweezers, at 90 degrees, as close as possible to the skin,  horizontally before it is pulled straight out from the skin.

NARRARTOR: Being in a well-lit area or using a magnifying glass may help you to see better when removing a tick. If you are not comfortable removing a tick or cannot reach it yourself, ask another person to help you as soon as possible. Start by grasping the tick at the head, as close to the skin as possible. Take your time and slowly pull it straight out. Try not to twist or squeeze the tick.

The man washes the tick bite area with soap and water.

NARRARTOR: Once removed, wash the bite area with soap and water or an alcohol-based sanitizer.

The scene changes to show the tick in a sealed plastic bag. Three check boxes appear beside the bag. The first one reads: “Place the tick in a sealed container”, the second reads “Take a photo”, and the third one reads “Record date, location, and part of the body that was bitten”. The boxes are marked with orange checkmarks.

NARRARTOR: Place the tick in a sealed bag or container. Take a photo of the tick and record the date and location as well as the part of your body where you were bitten. This information could be useful if you need to see a health care provider.

Rapid succession of objects starting with a bottle of nail polish, followed by:

A bottle of nail polish remover.

A jar of petroleum jelly.

An open box of matches.

And a bottle of essential oil.

The five items appear together. Text on screen reads: “Do Not Use”.

NARRARTOR:  Don’t try to remove the tick with nail polish or nail polish remover, petroleum jelly, heat or essential oils. These methods can damage the tick and increase the risk of infection.

The scene changes back to the man in the bathroom inspecting his arms. He dries off his arms with a towel.

NARRARTOR: Preventing tick bites is the best way to protect yourself and your family from Lyme disease and other infections spread by ticks.

The screen fades to white. Text on screen reads: “Canada.ca/LymeDisease”. Four ticks of different sizes appear on screen. The Government of Canada logo appears.

NARRARTOR: To find more on how to reduce ticks around your home, how to do a proper tick check, signs and symptoms to watch out for, and more, visit Canada.ca/LymeDisease

A message from the Government of Canada.