Is it true that you can get Lyme disease from tick bites?

Yes, Lyme disease is a bacterial infection spread to humans by infected ticks. Ticks are tiny arachnids found in woodland areas that feed on the blood of mammals, including humans.

Tick bites often go unnoticed and the tick can remain feeding for several days before dropping off. The longer the tick is in place, the higher the risk of it passing on the infection.

The best way to prevent getting Lyme disease is to be aware of the risks when you visit areas where ticks are likely to be found and to take sensible precautions.

When travelling to other European countries or to North America, where the infection occurs more frequently than in the UK, you should also be aware of the risks.

You can reduce the risk of infection by:

• being aware of ticks and the areas where they usually live

• keeping to footpaths and avoiding long grass when out walking

• wearing appropriate clothing in tick-infested areas (a long-sleeve shirt and trousers tucked into your socks)

• wearing light-coloured fabrics that may help you spot a tick on your clothes

• using insect repellents

• inspecting your skin for ticks, particularly at the end of the day, including your head, neck and skin folds (armpits, groin, and waistband)

• checking your children’s head and neck areas, including their scalp (skin on top of their head)

• making sure that ticks are not brought home on your clothes

• checking that pets do not bring ticks into your home in their fur

My daughter's ears stick out. She is four-years-old and I am worried that she will be self conscious about them when she gets older. Can she have surgery to correct them?

Around 1-2% of people in the UK think their ears stick out too much. While having protruding ears does not usually affect a person’s hearing, it can cause psychological distress, particularly for children.

The surgical technique to correct protruding ears is usually known as an otoplasty, or sometimes as a pinnaplasty.

It involves remodelling the cartilage in the ears. Cartilage is a thick, spongy tissue in the outside of the ears, the nose and many of the body’s joints. Once the cartilage has been remodelled into a more attractive shape, the ears are pinned further back with stitches.

What is Gestational Diabetes?

• Diabetes is a condition where there is too much glucose (sugar) in the blood.type 1 diabetes – when the body produces no insulin at all (often referred to as juvenile diabetes or early-onset diabetes)

• type 2 diabetes – when the body doesn't produce enough insulin and/or the body’s cells do not react to insulin (insulin resistance)

Gestational diabetes is a type of diabetes that affects women during pregnancy.. Normally, the amount of glucose in the blood is controlled by a hormone called insulin. However, during pregnancy, some women have higher than normal levels of glucose in their blood and their body cannot produce enough insulin to transport it all into the cells. This means that the level of glucose in the blood rises.

Gestational diabetes can be controlled with diet and exercise. However, some women with gestational diabetes will need medication to control blood glucose levels.

If gestational diabetes is not detected and controlled, it can increase the risk of birth complications, such as babies being large for their gestational age (Macrosomia).

In most cases, gestational diabetes develops in the third trimester (after 28 weeks) and usually disappears after the baby is born. However, women who develop gestational diabetes are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes later in life.