Lyme disease is spread through a tick bite.
Lyme disease is not contagious or spread from one person to another through touch or saliva.
The bacteria that causeLyme diseasecan live in the blood.
Verywell / Katie Kerpel
Though there have been no cases, transmission through blood contact or a blood transfusion may be possible.
It can be transmitted from a pregnant person to a fetus.
Verywell / Katie Kerpel
Is It Possible for Lyme Disease to Spread From One Person to Another?
Lyme disease is not contagious.
The infection is not spread through sexual contact.
Can You Get Lyme Disease Through Blood?
No cases of Lyme disease have been reported from contact with blood or a blood transfusion.
However, researchers have found that blood stored for transfusion can contain live Lyme bacteria.
If you currently have Lyme disease or are being treated with antibiotics, do not donate blood.
You may donate blood again once you’ve completed treatment.
Can Lyme Disease Spread Through Breast Milk?
If you get Lyme and are lactating, let your healthcare provider know so they can prescribe lactation-safe antibiotics.
Can Lyme Disease Spread to the Fetus During Pregnancy?
The bacteria can infect the placenta if a pregnant person has anuntreated Lyme diseaseinfection.
In rare cases, the bacteria can spread to the fetus.
There is not enough scientific evidence to determine if there are any adverse effects on the infant.
The infection does not seem to have adverse effects if treated promptly with antibiotics.
What Is the Most Common Way to Get Lyme Disease?
A tick needs to be infected with the bacteria to pass it on.
The risk of infection isn’t immediate, either.
Risk increases over time.
The tick typically needs to be attached for over a day before a Lyme infection can take hold.
After a tick bites you, you have about 24 hours to remove it.
Getting the tick off within this timeframe greatly reduces your risk of Lyme infection.
If you see a tick on your skin, don’t scratch or pick at it.
Instead, use a tick removal machine or a set of fine-tipped tweezers to remove it.
Grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible and pull with steady, even pressure.
After removing the tick, keep it in a bag so you’re able to identify it.
A healthcare provider may want to examine it or test it for Lyme disease.
Determining what kind of tick it is can help determine if you are at risk of Lyme disease.
Wash the area thoroughly with soap and water.
Take a picture and monitor your skin for changes for a few weeks.
This reaction may look like a small bump or welt at the site.
It may look like a mosquito bite.
This reaction should go away within a couple of days.
It does not mean you have Lyme disease.
Later symptomsinclude severe headaches, joint stiffness and swelling, pain, and other rashes.
If you have these symptoms, see a healthcare provider.
These symptoms tend to improve over time without additional antibiotic treatment.
The person is not contagious at this stage since the original infection hascleared the body.
It is not contagious through human contact.
No cases of Lyme disease have spread through touch, saliva, or sex.
Though Lyme bacteria can survive in blood, no cases have been reported from transfusions or contact with blood.
In pregnant people, Lyme can infect the placenta.
In some cases, passing it on to the fetus may be possible.
This is so rare that researchers do not know much about how it affects the fetus or infant.
Pets cannot infect you with Lyme disease, but they can bring ticks indoors.
Early Lyme symptoms resemble the flu.
To prevent complications, prompt tick removal and antibiotic treatment are essential.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Signs and symptoms of untreated Lyme disease.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Treatment and intervention for Lyme disease.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Chronic symptoms and Lyme disease.
National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Disease.Chronic Lyme disease.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.About Lyme disease.
Food and Drug Administration.Ticks and Lyme disease: symptoms, treatment, and prevention.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Preventing tick bites.
Environmental Protection Agency.Repellents: protection against mosquitoes, ticks and other arthropods.
