If you decide to take advantage of the possibility to detect the risk of infection transmission from a tick by sending it to Protean s.r.o. laboratory for analysis, follow the instructions below.
Put the tick into a plastic bag and seal the bag tightly. You may also use a test tube or small pill/cream container. If the container is fragile, insert it into a foam envelope to avoid container damage and loss of the tick. In case you have ordered a tick-card or a tick removal travel kit, a convenient plastic bag is part of the kit.
If the tick is very small (in case of a tick larva), it is practical to put it in a smaller piece of tissue or cleansing pad before packing it into the plastic bag.
A tip for travelling: if you are on a trip and do not have a plastic bag at hand, you can stick the tick to the tape on paper tissue packaging.
Inappropriate way of packaging: it is very challenging to remove a tick from adhesive tape or plaster tape, thus try to avoid the use of these materials. Food foil should also be avoided during packaging.
Under no circumstances should you submit biological material other than ticks. Samples of skin, urine, blood, and others will not be processed!
The tick can be dead or alive. If the feeding tube remained in the skin after tick removal, send the removed part of the tick. If the tick was torn, send all its pieces. If you are not sure about the condition of the tick or whether you are dealing with a tick, please specify it in the order note. After checking the obtained sample, we will inform you about your questions.
Treatment with various tick removal substances, disinfectants, soaps or ointments does not interfere with the analysis. Ideally you should send the tick for analysis as soon as possible after removing the tick from the skin, so that the risk of infection can be detected early and preventive measures or treatment initiation may start. The tick may be stored at room temperature. If you cannot send the tick immediately, store it in the refrigerator.
If testing for tick-borne encephalitis, we recommend analyzing the tick within the first week after the bite; for other disease analyses within two weeks after the bite. A longer waiting time may lower the reliability of the analysis.
If you removed more than one tick from your skin, these can be analyzed together (maximum of 10 tick from one person) for the price of one analysis. If the ticks are big (fed for a long time; usually found on dogs or cats) only 5 fit in one sample.
Specify the quantity of ticks in the order note to ensure a complete analysis of all submitted ticks.
If you are sending ticks removed from more than one person, label the individual plastic bags or containers with the names of each person and fill in one order form for each person.
Fill in the online analysis order form.
Tip: enjoy the benefits of a registered customer - from the second sample there is always a 10% discount.
You will receive a confirmation of the order along with your sample number and payment instructions by email.
You do not need to print the order form, simply write the sample number on a piece of paper and insert it in the envelope along with the packaged tick.
Express analysis
In urgent cases, it is possible to order an express analysis, which ensures results in one workday from the arrival of the tick at the laboratory.
Joinder of samples
If you order an analysis and meanwhile find another tick on your skin, it is possible to call us and agree on analysis delay until the second tick arrives at the laboratory to analyse them as one sample (or as in case of a multiple tick sample).
Registered customers - have from the second sample always a 10% discount.
Collecting site in Prague
In Prague it is possible to submit ticks for analysis at a collection site at the adress: NATURE VITALITY, Dejvická 555/36, Praha 6, on Mon-Fri at 10-18h. Here you CAN NOT PAY IN CASH.
Send the tick together with the sample number by post to our laboratory. You will then receive a confirmation by email about he reception of the tick at the laboratory.
Results are sent after receiving the payment, thus it is advisable to make a payment at the same time as sending the tick. In the case on an express analysis, we recommend online payment by card. If you send us a copy of the bank transfer receipt by email, the delivery of results will be accelerated.
If you wish to pay by cash on delivery, the results will be sent to you by post and forwarded after payment.
After a phone call, the tick can also be delivered personally to the Laboratory of Protean s.r.o., which is located in the building of the State Veterinary Institute in Ceské Budejovice.Payment can be made in cash here.
In Prague it is possible to submit ticks for analysis at a collection site at the adress: NATURE VITALITY, Dejvická 555/36, Praha 6 on Mon-Fri at 10-18h. Here you CAN NOT PAY IN CASH.
You will receive the results by email within 3 workdays of the sample arrival to the laboratory (within 1 day for an express analysis). If you wish to be contacted by phone, please specify this in the order note. In case of a positive test we additionally send the results by post.
In case of a positive test, consult your doctor about further measures.
Results are sent after receiving the payment.
A positive result confirms the presence of the pathogen in the tick and thus a high chance of infection transmission. The outcome depends largely on the time of tick feeding, individual immunity, and current fitness of the person.
In case of a negative test, caution is still advisable. Infection from a different tick that has not been detected on the body and has not been analysed can occur, so the patient should check for typical signs of a infection.