THE EXPOSURE TO TICKS AND THE PRREVENTIVE ACTIONS IN THE SCOPE OF THE LYME DISEASE WITH LYME AMONG YOUNG PEOPLE FROM THE NORTHERN PART OF LUBELSZCZYZNA (EASTERN POLAND)

Background. The ticks are the main vector of pathogens of infectious diseases both for people and animals. At present, tick-borne infections spread in the entire Europe. Lyme disease domi¬nates among diseases spreading through ticks. The aim of the research was to determine the frequency of exposures to ticks of the subjected young people, applied ways of removing the ticks and the frequency of using the selected methods of Lyme disease prevention.

Material and methods. The study involved 1150 people from the northern part of Lublin prov¬ince (eastern Poland) at the age between15-20 years. The research tool applied was authors’ own survey questionnaire.

Results. Over half of the surveyed young people (58.9%) stated that they had been bitten by ticks before (mostly people who live in the rural areas). Most frequently, the ticks were removed by wringing with tweezers (24.5%), grasping with fingers and tearing out (21.7%) and with tweezers with a swift, steady movement (21.6%). Over half of the surveyed (57.4%) stated that they do not use repellents against ticks while staying on the green areas, and 33.2% of the sur¬veyed rarely use them. 18.3% of the surveyed do not examine the body after the return from the green areas and 34.8% rarely do it. The surveyed who had been bitten by ticks (especially several times) claimed that they more often use the analysed methods of prevention.

Conclusions. Among the examined young people the risk of being bitten by ticks has been re¬vealed and the risk is significantly greater among people who live in the rural areas. The ticks attached to skin were often removed improperly. The frequency of using the prevention against Lyme disease is insufficient. The increase of the range of its usage, as well as the promotion of the right method of removing ticks requires educational activities in the society.