About your visit

You have been stung or bitten by an insect or tick. We have cleaned the site and ensured that the tick or the sting from the insect has been removed.

When you get home

Dial 112 if your symptoms get worse

Dial 112 if you:

• feel dizzy or unwell
• experience itching, swelling or rash on areas other than the site of the sting or bite
• faint
• have trouble breathing.

You may have an allergic reaction

Insect bites and stings can develop into an allergic reaction that results in itching, swelling, and heat on and around the site of the bite or sting. The swelling may last for several days. The reaction is harmless and will go away by itself on its own. You can use antihistamine if your skin becomes very irritated.

Contact your general practitioner or dial 1813 to reach the medical helpline outside your general practitioner’s opening hours if:

• you experience increasing redness or swelling several days after the sting
• you experience sore and swollen lymph nodes, for example in the armpit or groin
• you develop a rash
• red stripes appear under the skin on the site of the sting or bite

If you have had a tick removed

Check yourself for more ticks
There may be other ticks on your body that we have not found. Therefore, you should examine your armpits, groin, genitals and the back of your knees when you get home.

Remove the tick yourself and clean the bite

If you are bitten by a tick again, you can remove it yourself. Use a pair of tweezers, a tick removal tool (from the pharmacy), or your nails if nothing else is available. Remove the tick by grabbing is as close to your skin as possible and pull it out. Avoid squeezing the tick’s body, as this can increase the risk of transferring bacteria. Clean the bite area with soap and water. The head of the tick may remain, it will fall off within a few days and is not dangerous.

If you develop symptoms of Lyme disease, contact your general practitioner

A tick can transfer the bacterium Borrellia burgdorferi to humans. It must be treated with antibiotics. Call your general practitioner or dial 1813 to reach the medical helpline outside your general practitioner’s opening hours if you experience the following within six months after the bite:

• a circular red skin rash around the site of the tick bite. The rash expands gradually while becoming lighter in the middle.
• prolonged headaches
• decreased appetite
• fatigue
• shooting pains in both arms 
• paralysis on one side of your face.

Worth knowing