Bite from a tiny tick in the garden lef t my face paralysed
WHEN Claire Dean found insect bites on her hip after gardening, she wrote them off as a minor hazard of working with nature.
But within days, she was suffering flu-like symptoms and worsening pain.
The 43- year- ol d, of Castle Douglas, Kirkcudbrightshire, then noticed a numbness in her cheeks that then developed into facial paralysis.
Eventually she was diagnosed with Lyme disease – a potentially serious condition spread by infected ticks which can affect the skin, joints, heart and nervous system.
Yesterday, the mother-of-two said her illness began after she was bitten while working in her back garden in September. She said: ‘I was in agony. The bites themselves weren’t itchy or painful, so I didn’t think they were the cause at first.
‘I’m quite an active person and just put the aches and sharp pains down to my body being worn out.’
As her condition worsened, she went to Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary. Medics at first diagnosed pressure sores and she was given painkillers before being sent home with crutches.
Mrs Dean said: ‘I tried to hide the pain from my kids as I didn’t want to worry them, but it was getting harder to put on a brave face. I had to quit my job as a cleaner. I couldn’t work, I was in that much pain.’
Her agony became so bad that a doctor was called to the house and gave her a morphine injection.
A few days later, Mrs Dean lost feeling in her cheeks and failed to recognise herself in the mirror when she got out of bed.
Barely able to open her mouth and speak, smiling or wrinkling her nose was almost impossible.
Her GP diagnosed Bell’s palsy, a condition that causes temporary weakness of the facial muscles.
But after six months with no signs of improvement, she was referred to hospital. Mrs Dean had blood tests and a lumbar puncture, where a needle is inserted into the lower part of the spine to test for conditions affecting the brain, spinal cord or nervous system.
It was only then that Lyme disease was diagnosed and Mrs Dean remembered being bitten.
‘I showed the bites to the doctors and they confirmed they were tick bites,’ she said. ‘Bell’s palsy can
‘Aches and sharp pains in my body’
be caused by an i nfection, so suddenly all of the symptoms I’d been suffering made sense.’
She spent two weeks in hospital and was given antibiotics. Despite still having some facial paralysis the affected muscles are getting stronger and she has regained some movement. Mrs Dean, who is mother to Alexandra, 21, and 12-year-old Carl, said: ‘I hope my story encourages people to take more care in their back gardens. Who knows what’s lurking in your flower bed.’
According to estimates, more than 3,000 cases of Lyme disease occur in the UK each year. It is spread by blood-sucking ticks found in long grass and undergrowth.
Despite a rise in infections, the Scottish Government has no plans to commit additional resources towards tackling the problem.
Scottish Labour MSP Margaret McDougall said: ‘More needs to be done to make sure the public is properly informed about the dangers of Lyme disease and how to remove ticks safely.’