Symptoms of Tick-borne Encephalitis

For Everyone

Key points

  • Tick-borne encephalitis can result in mild febrile illness or severe neurologic disease, including meningitis or encephalitis.
  • If you think you or a family member might have tick-borne encephalitis, talk to your healthcare provider.
A person holds a Celsius thermometer in their hand.

Symptoms

Many people infected with tick-borne encephalitis virus do not have symptoms. For people with symptoms, the time from tick bite to feeling sick (incubation period) is usually about 7 to 14 days but can range from about 4 to 28 days.

Initial symptoms can include:

  • Fever
  • Headache
  • Vomiting
  • Weakness

Sometimes initial symptoms last a few days and completely resolve, but then about a week later more severe symptoms develop. This is called a biphasic illness.

Severe symptoms can include:

  • Confusion
  • Loss of coordination
  • Difficulty speaking
  • Weakness of the arms or legs
  • Seizures

Treatment

There are no medicines available to treat tick-borne encephalitis. Rest, fluids, and over-the-counter pain medications may relieve some symptoms.

Testing and diagnosis

If you think you or a family member might have tick-borne encephalitis, talk to your healthcare provider.

Healthcare providers diagnose tick-borne encephalitis based on:

Your healthcare providers can order tests to look for tick-borne encephalitis virus or other infections that can cause similar symptoms.

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Content Source:
National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID)