Tick anaphylaxis triggered by pulling out the tick.

BACKGROUND

Reports of tick anaphylaxis are extremely rare in Asian countries, with poor awareness in these regions. Herein, we report a case of tick anaphylaxis that was triggered by pulling out the tick.

CASE PRESENTATION

A 66-year-old man developed pruritus in his left toes after returning from a mountain. Three days later, he found a swollen tick biting at the skin between the second and third toes and pulled it out. Approximately 30 min after pulling out the tick, he started to feel a burning sensation in his chest and was brought to our hospital. He was diagnosed with anaphylactic shock (systolic blood pressure, 60 mmHg) and immediately received intramuscular adrenaline.

CONCLUSION

To our knowledge, this is the first case of tick anaphylaxis triggered by tick removal in an Asian country. A tick should be removed without pressure on its body, especially in patients with tick or bee allergy.