Have you visited a place where ticks are likely to be found? Check yourself and others for ticks.
Tips to find ticks on the body
- Ticks are very small, only 1 to 3 millimetres. They are easy to miss. If you have just been bitten by a tick, at first it will look like a small black dot on your skin. Once they bite, ticks start drinking blood. After several days, they swell up to a brown or grey ball the size of a pea.
- Use a magnifying glass or mirror as needed to check in places that are difficult to see, or ask someone else to check you for ticks.
- Remember to check your clothing. Remove ticks from your clothes. If they are attached, wash your clothes at 60 degrees for at least 30 minutes, or put your clothes in the dryer.
A recent study via Tekenradar.nl showed that ticks often bite children in different locations than adults:
| Children | Adults |
|---|---|
| Head and neck (32%) | Legs (55%) |
| Torso (chest, abdomen, back, shoulders and armpits) (27%) | Torso (chest, abdomen, back, shoulders and armpits) (22%) |
| Legs (25%) | Arms (11%) |
| Arms (10%) | Groin (9%) |
| Groin (7%) | Head and neck (3%) |
Read more about the study on where ticks bite.
This study shows the spots on the human body where tick bites are most common. It is still important to check the whole body for ticks, since ticks can bite you anywhere. So do not forget to check your groin, the backs of your knees, armpits, buttocks, along your underwear, behind your ears, and around the hairline at your neck.
Video: Checking for ticks (in Dutch)
Ben je in een omgeving geweest waar teken voorkomen?
Dan is het belangrijk jezelf en kinderen te controleren op teken.
Teken kunnen overal op het lichaam bijten.
Vergeet niet de liezen, bilspleet, oksels, onder de randen van ondergoed, achter de oren en rond de haargrens in je nek goed te controleren.
Sommige van deze plekken kan je zelf moeilijk zien, gebruik hierbij een spiegel of laat iemand anders controleren.
Een teek bijt zich vast in je huid.
Dat ziet eruit als een klein zwarte puntje van 1 tot 3 mm.
Doordat de teek bloed opzuigt, zwelt deze na enkele dagen op tot een bruin of grijs bolletje zo groot als een erwt.
Heb je een teek?
Haal deze zo snel mogelijk weg, bijvoorbeeld met een spits pincet of een speciale tekenverwijderaar.
Vergeet daarna niet de rest van het lichaam te controleren.
Teken komen namelijk zelden alleen.
Meer weten?
Kijk op rivm.nl/tekenbeet
If you have been in an area where ticks are likely to be found, it is important to check for ticks. Check yourself and others, especially children.
Ticks can bite you anywhere.
Don’t forget to check the groin and buttocks, armpits, along the underwear, behind the ears, and around the hairline at your neck.
Some of these spots are hard to check on your own, so use a mirror or ask someone else to help you check.
A tick can attach itself to your skin.
At first, it looks like a small black dot, about 1 to 3 mm.
The tick drinks blood, causing it to swell up to a brown or grey ball the size of a pea several days later.
If you have a tick, remove it as soon as possible. You can use pointed tweezers or a special tick remover.
Remember to check the rest of your body too!
Where there is one tick, there are likely to be more.
Would you like to know more? Go to rivm.nl/tick-bites