Survival Guide - Discover Switzerland: Experience the Best of Switzerland - page 628

Health
An embassy, consulate or hotel can usually recommend a local doctor or clinic. The quality
of health care in Switzerland is generally very high.
ALTITUDE SICKNESS
This disorder can occur above 3000m, but very few treks or ski runs in the Swiss Alps
reach such heights - Mont Blanc is one exception - so altitude sickness is unlikely.
TICKS
These small creatures can be found throughout Switzerland up to an altitude of 1200m, and
typically live in underbrush at the forest edge or beside walking tracks.
You should always check your whole body if you've been walking through a potentially
tick-infested area. If a tick is found attached, press down around the tick's head with tweez-
ers, grab the head and gently pull upwards. Avoid pulling the rear of the body as this may
squeeze the tick's gut contents through the attached mouth-parts into the skin, increasing
the risk of infection and disease. Smearing chemicals on the tick is not recommended.
LYME DISEASE
This is an infection transmitted by ticks that may be acquired in Europe. The illness usually
begins with a spreading rash at the site of the tick bite and is accompanied by fever, head-
ache, extreme fatigue, aching joints and muscles, and mild neck stiffness. If untreated,
these symptoms usually resolve over several weeks, but over subsequent weeks or months,
disorders of the nervous system, heart and joints may develop. Treatment works best early
in the illness. Seek medical help.
TICK-BORNE ENCEPHALITIS
This disease is a cerebral inflammation carried by a virus. Tick-borne encephalitis can oc-
cur in most forest and rural areas of Switzerland. If you have been bitten, even having re-
moved the tick, you should keep an eye out for symptoms, including blotches around the
bite, which is sometimes pale in the middle. Headache, stiffness and other flu-like symp-
toms, as well as extreme tiredness, appearing a week or two after the bite, can progress to
more serious problems. Medical help must be sought. A vaccination is available.