Eyelid Tick Manifestation in Subhimalayan Region – A Case Series of 3 Cases

Abstract

Ticks are ectoparasites which live by hematophagy and transmit zoonoses including Lyme disease, tularemia, Scrub typhus, etc. We present a short case series of 3 cases of tick infestations of the eyelids in a span of 3 weeks during the winter season in our centre. 2 patients were elderly females and in one case a young school boy was affected. Two patients had tick manifestation in upper eyelid and in 1 case lateral canthal skin was affected. Chief complaint of all patients was pain, redness and swelling of the eyelids from last 48-72 hours and no patient was aware of any live organism attached to their eyelids. Complete mechanical removal of ticks with blunt non toothed forceps under slit lamp was done and sent for microbiological examination, which revealed them to be hard ticks of genus Ixodes. All patients were given antibiotic prophylaxis. Neither patient developed systemic disease or adverse sequelae after tick extraction. Complete mechanical removal of ticks located on the eyelid with blunt forceps is a safe and effective treatment method.

Keywords

• eyelid
• tick
• subhimalayan