Experts have issued a warning after a woman lost her hair following an insect bite.

The 28-year-old, from Boston, Massachusetts, was bitten on top of her scalp and subsequently suffered hair loss around the affected site.

The alopecia started to spread and the patient was left with thinning hair, as well as bald patches across her head.

The case report reads: “Upon presentation, her exam revealed diffuse patchy hair loss […] with yellow and black dots and exclamation point hairs throughout the entire scalp, and postinflammatory hyperpigmentation and scar-like alopecia at the site of attachment.”

The alopecia occurred after the insect bite (Getty Stock Photo)

Hair loss can be a result of tick bites. Healthline explains: “Hair loss has also been a reported symptom both anecdotally and in clinical case reports. This may be caused by temporary hair follicle damage from the infection, or from the tick bite itself.”

Writing in JAAD Case Reports, medics have explained further: “Tick bite alopecia, although rare, has maintained a relatively predictable clinical course.

“Hard tick scalp attachment typically induces tissue necrosis [death] and the formation of an eschar [dead tissue that forms over healthy skin that then sheds] that ultimately progresses to a patch of moth-eaten-appearing cicatricial alopecia [scarring hair loss].

A case report reveals the patient’s hair loss (National Library of Medicine)

“Surrounding hair loss can occur around the attachment site.”

While hair loss can resolve in a few months, experts say it can in some cases take up to five years.

After consulting doctors, the anonymous patient – who also had polycystic ovary syndrome – began taking a steroid, followed by a medication called baricitinib.

Baricitinib is a strong drug used to treat severe rheumatoid arthritis, as well as alopecia and eczema.

After a few months, the woman’s hair began to grow, with ‘significant regrowth in all prior alopecic sites apart from the tick attachment site and the immediate surrounding area’, the case report explains.

Ticks are small insects that feed on the blood of birds and mammals, including humans.

Ticks can be found in grassy and woodland areas (Getty Stock Photo)

They’re usually found in woodland, moorland or grassy areas, such as gardens and parks.

They can’t fly, but attach onto skin or fur if the animal or person is standing close enough, or walking by.

Tick bites can cause swelling, itchiness and blistering around the site and if you do think you’ve been bitten by a tick, it’s important to seek medical advice.

In some cases, tick bites can lead to Lyme disease, which is a potentially serious illness.

If not treated, Lyme disease can cause pain and swelling in the joints, nerve issues, memory problems, difficulty concentrating and heart complications.

According to experts, tick bites are on the rise in the UK.

Sally Cutler, professor of medical microbiology at the University of East London, explained in The Conversation: “It’s difficult to estimate how much tick populations have really increased, and whether this is part of a long-term trend, because tick abundance surveys tend to be localised and sporadic, and the tick life-cycle typically spans around two years.

“But we are seeing both an upsurge of some species and the establishment of new ticks in the UK in recent years.”

Harrowing footage of a woman hopping the fence and coming face-to-face with a tiger at a New Jersey zoo has circulated online.

The visitor is now wanted by authorities after she made her way into the tiger enclosure seemingly with the intention of getting close to the big cat, almost undergoing a horrific accident in the process.

A video of the bizarre incident, which happened at Cohanzick Zoo, was shared on Facebook by the Bridgeton Police Department on Tuesday (20 August), with the post detailing that she climbed over a wooden fence to touch the predator and ‘almost getting bit’ while doing so.

Footage shows the woman trying to get the tiger to react by putting her hand through the wires which block the animal from getting out.

The tiger sniffed it for a moment, before lunging at her and attempting to have a bite of the snack she was apparently offering up.

She then jolted back before the big cat turned away, holding still while looking away, then hopping back over the wooden fencing which is around four feet high.

The Facebook post from local authorities revealed a photo of a sign at the zoo near the tiger enclosure that said: “Do not climb over the fence. Climbing over any zoo fence is against city ordinance 247-C.”

In the police department’s statement following the incident, they said: “Reminder to the public when visiting the zoo that it is against City Ordinance to climb over any fence.”

The footage shows how close the woman was to a horrific accident. (Bridgeton Police Department)

Police later said in a statement: “A female at the Cohanzick Zoo went over the wooden fence at the tiger enclosure and began enticing the tiger almost getting bit by putting her hand through the wire enclosure.”

They shared the video on social media in the hope that someone would recognise her and send them anonymous tips through their official website.

According to local media outlet News 12 New Jersey, these actions would warrant a ban or restriction from the zoo.

John Medica, Director of Recreation and Public Affairs for the City of Bridgeton, told People in a statement: “Any visitor behaviour that places the animals, staff and members of the public in a potentially dangerous situation is unacceptable and will be addressed accordingly.”

The tiger lunged at the tresspasser. (Bridgeton Police Department)

Bridgeton is located 50 miles south of the state of Philadelphia, while Cohanzick Zoo opened in 1934, branding itself as the first zoo in New Jersey.

It now houses about 45 species of animals, including leopards, bears and mountain lions among others.

The zoo’s website reveals that the tiger is one of two Bengal tigers that were born in 2016 and donated by another zoo in North Carolina in 2017.

LADbible Group has reached out to Bridgeton Police Department and Cohanzick Zoo for comment.

Social media might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it certainly comes in handy in some situations.

On the odd occasion, it can even make the difference between life and death – especially when the topic at hand has piqued the interest of Reddit users who love to sink their teeth into a good old mystery.

Amateur sleuths dusted off their detective hats to get to the bottom of quite a bizarre conundrum which a frightened bloke shared on a forum a few years ago.

But the now-notorious post has recently resurfaced – and the moral of the story remains just as prominent today too.

A user who goes by the username @RBradbury1920 explained that they had suddenly started to find notes stuck around their apartment with odd scrawlings on them from an unknown source that were ‘in a handwriting that wasn’t his’. Spooky, right?

The Reddit user explained strange Post-it notes started appearing all around his apartment. (Getty Stock Photo)

In a post, he wrote: “On the 15th of April, I found a yellow Post-it note in a handwriting that wasn’t mine on my desk reminding me of some errands I had to do, but told literally nobody about.

“While odd, I chalked it up to something I did in my sleep, thinking maybe in my half-awake state I scrawled it so it didn’t appear to be my handwriting. I threw it out and thought little of it.”

However, after this continued for a few weeks, the bloke started to think up all kinds of conspiracy theories.

Just four days after finding the first note, the Redditor explained that they had discovered another Post-it had been placed on the back on his desk chair which chillingly reminded him to ‘make sure he saved his documents’.

He explained: “I was freaked out, but there were no other signs of a break in, so I set up a webcam in my house aimed at my desk and used a security-cam app for it to record after detecting movement.

“On the 28th, I woke up to find another post-it note, this one saying, ‘Our landlord isn’t letting me talk to you, but it’s important we do’.”

But when he checked what his webcam had picked up, he ‘found nothing’ – and to add another layer of mystery, the computer’s recycling bin had also been emptied, which he said he was ‘certain he did not do recently’.

The man became convinced that he was being stalked. (Getty Stock Photo)

As I’m sure you can gather, it was really chalking up to be quite the epic whodunnit.

The man told social media users that he suspected it might be the work of a stalker or possibly a burglar who was weighing up his property and trying to frighten him – so he turned to Reddit to get an outside opinion.

He’d really started to panic after noticing another Post-it note, which was blank, had been stuck on the outside of his door as well as on some of his neighbours doors too.

At this point, the paranoid Redditor was pretty sure that his landlord was the one playing Post-it note mind games with him – however, Reddit users realised it was more likely something even more concerning might actually be going on.

After a few people questioned that the notes didn’t ‘make any sense in the context’ if the landlord was behind them, one smarty pants clicked onto the fact it was ‘likely that [the man] is writing the notes himself, but he is forgetting’.

So, the lad looked a little bit closer to home and surprisingly found the answer was right under his nose all along.

Updating those who had followed the ‘stalker’ saga, he wrote: “Thanks to everyone who sent suggestions and gave advice on how to proceeded – especially to those who recommended a CO [carbon monoxide] detector…because when I plugged one in in the bedroom, it read at 100ppm.

“I had CO poisoning and thought my landlord was stalking me.”

So, the good people of Reddit may have saved the original poster’s life with their detective work, as you can become seriously ill if you breathe this poisonous gas in.

Symptoms of CO poisoning include headaches, dizziness, confusion, nausea, vomiting, brain fog, impaired memory, chest and muscle pain as well as shortness of breath.

But I guess we ought to add severe paranoia and a penchant for doodling on Post-it notes at this rate too.

The man later explained that his apartment was situated ‘above the garage’ and that he had been writing ‘all sorts of nonsense’ before someone warned him what was going on – so he was very, very grateful he made a Reddit account, to say the least.

Remember to always contact the emergency services before sharing a post on Reddit in most crises, though.

Two UK holidaymakers were left mortified after their luxury break to a Greek island turned out to be a complete ‘catfish’.

Booking holidays abroad can be stressful for a number of reasons, but two British travellers were left completely devastated when their trip to the island of Corfu turned out to be a complete disaster.

Friends Lewis Stacey and Christopher Smith were left devastated after learning their Corfu hotel was not as expected (Supplied)

Friends Lewis Stacey and Christopher Smith had chosen the Greek island as their destination to soak up some sun before the colder months rolled around, forking out £750 each on the island’s four-star boutique Porto Demo hotel.

Booking the trip through travel agent loveholidays, the listing promised a ‘luxury’ stay close to the sandy beach, with complimentary entertainment, an all-inclusive buffet, and amenities such as table tennis, billiards, and hydro massages.

But instead of a sun kissed paradise, the pair say they were greeted by a completely different scenario upon arriving at the hotel and have since claimed the advertised images were either ‘AI or computer-generated’.

LADbible has since seen a number of images provided by Lewis, which show a comparison between images advertised online and photos taken by the friends.

LADbible has put these claims to the Porto Demo hotel, which they responded by calling the the friends’ account ‘unfounded allegations’ and added they take ‘pride in maintaining our facilities and addressing concerns promptly’.

Photos supplied to LADbible by Lewis and Chris showing a clouded swimming pool and ant infestation at the hotel (Supplied)

A photo used to advertise the Porto Demo hotel online (Porto Demo/loveholidays)

Recalling the moment they arrived at the complex, Lewis told LADbible: “It was mortifying, like, my stomach completely sank.”

Not quite the emotions you’d hope to be feeling as you kick off your holiday, eh?

Further unpleasantness awaited them as they located their room, which was covered in dust and a shower door that ‘looked like it had fallen off’ and subsequently replaced by a curtain.

Sadly for the pair, this wasn’t the end of the nightmare.

‘Inedible’ food served to guests also meant that Lewis and Chris felt forced to fork out for meals out, adding another £250 onto the already spenny week away.

Lewis revealed that he and Chris had complained to the hotel’s reception the following day and were moved to a ‘bigger, equally shabby room’ before being told to take

Lewis explained that he had travelled across the world and wasn’t adverse to staying in basic accommodation, but was particularly upset as he’d specifically chosen the location for a ‘luxury’ break and didn’t feel as through he received the experience advertised.

“None of it looked like what was advertised online. That was a huge part of the problem,” he claimed.

“The bed, I rub my hands across the headboard and dust fell onto the pillow. The rooms were never cleaned during the seven days we were there.

“Everything was just so bizarrely not real, you know, like it just felt surreal.”

Even more strange was Lewis’s claim that hotel staff then approached him and requested he leave a positive review on his final day at the hotel.

“On the last day, the manager and the co-manager approached me, I was on my own, and tried to encourage me to write a review, with them overshadowing me, to sort of intimidate me into writing a good review,” he recalled.

“And then when I went back to the bar and spoke to some people, that’s pretty common practice there.”

An ant infestation which the friends claim they saw at the hotel (Supplied)

Lewis added that complaints made to hotel staff were ‘dismissed’, and that they were told to speak to travel operator loveholidays. They have since lodged a formal complaint which they are still waiting to hear back from.

“We wanted some level of responsibility to be taken because we’ve paid up £1500 for this four-star boutique, luxury experience,” he said. “And none of it matches.”

Lewis isn’t the only disgruntled holidaymaker to speak out about his experience at the hotel either, with fellow Brit Will Marsden also branding the hotel a ‘catfish’ on social media.

A loveholidays spokesperson told LADbible Group: “We are very sorry to hear of Mr Smith and Mr Stacey’s experience at their hotel, and are investigating their complaint with the hotel. While we conduct regular checks of the content supplied by our hotel partners, we are also undertaking a full review of this hotel’s listing for accuracy as a matter of urgency.”

They also said that they were still investigating the couple’s complaint, and ‘will remain in touch with them throughout this process’, adding that they were ‘within the industry standard timeframe (28 days) that we allow for post-travel complaints’.

An exterior image used to advertise the hotel (Porto Demo/loveholidays)

This timeframe reportedly ensures that they ‘have enough time to conduct a thorough investigation with the suppliers involved’, they wrote.

Meanwhile, the manager for the Porto Demo hotel told LADbible: “We have reviewed Christopher Smith and Lewis Stacey’s complaint regarding their stay at our hotel, and we must address their claims with the seriousness they deserve.

“Their allegations of false advertising and misrepresentation are not only exaggerated but also appear to be a deliberate attempt to seek financial compensation through misleading assertions. Our marketing materials are designed to accurately reflect the property, utilising professional photography to highlight its features.

“While we recognise that they might have experienced some issues during their stay, their descriptions of the hotel and its services are inflated and in no way reflect the reality of our offerings.”