Mom warns parents of tick dangers after daughter left paralyzed

GRENADA, Miss. – A mother is warning other parents of tick dangers after her daughter was left paralyzed.

Jessica Griffin of Mississippi posted the story of her daughter, Kailyn, to Facebook last week. 

Griffin to Kailyn to the hospital after the girl had trouble walking in the morning. Following a CT scan and blood tests, doctors diagnosed Kailyn with tick paralysis.

A tick that may have been the cause of the paralysis was found and removed from the top of Kailyn's head. The CDC says tick paralysis is caused by a toxin found in tick saliva, reports KABC.

As tick paralysis usually disappears in 24 hours, Griffin posted later that Kailyn was back to her normal self.

Still, Griffin felt alarmed enough to post the warning.

PLEASE for the love of god check your kids for ticks! It’s more common in children than it is adults! We are being admitted to the hospital for observation and we’re hoping her balance gets straightened out! Prayers for this baby! Scary is a UNDERSTATEMENT! She has been such a champ throughout this whole ordeal! 

A report in May revealed that diseases transmitted through the bites of blood-feeding ticks, mosquitoes, and fleas are a "growing public health problem" in the United States and tripled nationwide.