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PrintUgh. Bed Bugs.
“Yep, that’s a bed bug,” I said, as I compared the little critter they’d brought in the plastic jar to pictures from the CDC. “Those are probably bites from the bed bug on your arms, legs and back. I was no expert on bedbugs (thankfully), but the findings were classic.
Shriek!!! The Horror – The Horror!!! OMG!!
Their reaction was like a bomb went off. They were freaked out!
That was the most unexpectedly draining visit of the day. I had already seen a kid with pneumonia, a pregnant woman who couldn’t stop vomiting, a few more with menopausal misery, some others with kidney disease, heart failure, diabetes and an ankle fracture; even the guy with the big prostate was easier to manage.
There are lots of questions and misunderstandings about bedbugs. Normally, when my patients are crying or in distress, I’d give them a hug, but in this case, I’ll admit I took a pass.
Last week’s report from “Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report” (MMWR) came out describing how pesticides used in attempts to fight bed bugs were making people sick, and that was the final straw…
Time for a primer on bed bugs.
Bed Bugs 101
Not much useful information is out there. Although they have been around for hundreds if not thousands of years, they weren’t too common in the United States until now. The resurgence is due to greater international and domestic travel, increased resistance to pesticides and lack of knowledge.
Bed bugs (Cimex lectularius) are small, flat, parasitic insects that feed solely on the blood of people and animals while they sleep. They are reddish-brown, wingless, ranging in size from 1 mm to 7 mm.
The flat part allows them to fit into the smallest places for long periods of time, like the seams of mattresses, box springs, bed frames, headboards, dressers, any cracks or crevices, behind wallpaper and under any clutter around a bed.
They can live several months without a blood meal, so they can hide a long time. Their infestations tend to live within eight feet of where people sleep. Bed bugs can travel over 100 feet in one night when they come out to do their feasting.
They’ve been found in shelters, hotels, nursing homes, hospitals, cruise ships, buses, trains and dorm rooms. Bed bugs are transported by hiding in the seams and folds of the luggage, overnight bags and the clothes of people traveling. Most people do not realize they can transport stow-away bed bugs to infest new areas, including their homes. Everyone is at risk for bed bug bites when visiting an infested area.
Bed bugs are really, really gross, but actually do not transmit diseases like other parasites. When bed bugs bite, they inject an anesthetic and an anticoagulant that prevents a person from feeling the bite. However, these bite marks may take as long as 14 days to develop in some people. Because bites usually occur while people are sleeping, most don’t realize they have been bitten until marks appear. The bite marks are similar to that of a mosquito or a flea – a slightly swollen and red area that may itch and be irritating and range from no reactions to severe redness and swelling. Because of the delayed reaction, it may be a while before realizing that you picked up bed bugs on your trip to New York last week, and that they’ve been in your house ever since.
Distinguishing bed bug bites from mosquitoes, fleas and spiders is difficult. People often confuse itchy bed bug welts for mosquito bites. The only way you really can confirm bed bugs is to find them in your bed or bedroom. Often people are bitten when traveling, making diagnosis even more difficult.
One way to begin to identify a bed bug infestation is by the bite marks that appear on the face, neck, arms, hands and any other body parts, but here are other signs to watch for:
- Uncovering the bed bugs’ exoskeletons after molting.
- Bed bugs in the fold of mattresses and sheets.
- They leave unsightly fecal spots on bed sheets and around their hiding places. These spots are darkish red in color, roughly round and can be very small.
- A sweet musty odor – bed bugs have stink glands that leave odors.
“What Do I Do, Other Than Freak Out!?”
So, what if you get bit? How horrible is that?
Bed bug bites in themselves usually do not pose a serious medical threat. The best way to treat a bite is to avoid scratching the area and apply antiseptic creams or lotions and take an antihistamine. But because they don’t really carry disease and you can’t feel their bites, there’s really not much more that needs done in the way of treatment.
However, getting rid of the infestations is a completely different story.
Managing a bed bug infestation is difficult, requires removal or treatment of all infested material and follow-up to make sure the infestation has been eliminated. Vacuuming, washing bedding at a high temperature, using steam or heat treatment and sealing up hiding places are key.
You can remove bed bugs and eggs by targeting the vacuum on the seams of mattresses and box springs, along perimeters of carpets, under baseboards and in other areas where bed bugs live. A single vacuuming rarely gets all bugs and eggs and should be repeated. Steam cleaners can also be used. Mattress encasements specifically designed to keep out bed bugs are available and are used in hotels. If infected, the best approach is to throw out the mattress, clean the area thoroughly and install a new mattress – with or without an encasement.
Commercial heating services treat entire rooms in homes for bed bug infestations by heating them to 140 F for two hours or 130 F for three hours, which will kill most bed bugs and eggs. Chilling to a temperature of 32 F or lower and maintaining this temperature for several days will also kill bed bugs.
For suspected infestations in clothing or bedding, a home laundry dryer is very good at killing bed bugs; only 10 to 15 minutes exposure is needed.
Insecticides may be required to eliminate serious infestations; however, few active ingredients for bed bugs are federally registered for over-the-counter use, and many people do end up hiring pest control. Consult with a professional bug control company. They’ll probably help you a lot more than your doctor.
