The appearance of blood-sucking parasites in the house can negatively affect the health of all family members, especially young children. After all, an allergy to bedbug bites is a common phenomenon that leads to various consequences: from rashes and itching to severe complications such as anaphylactic shock.
Bedbug bites can cause allergic reactions.
Causes of allergies
Allergy is a reaction of the immune system to contact with an irritant, expressed in various external manifestations.
Insect allergy occurs upon contact with insects. It occurs in response to poison, saliva, waste products, or microparticles from the bodies of insects entering the human blood.
Bed bugs that live in houses are called bed bugs. They have a dirty yellow or brown color, a flattened body shape and sizes up to 9 mm. These parasites feed on the blood of humans and animals mainly at night, and during the day they hide in secluded places, for example, in box springs and bed frames, mattresses, inside sofas, in ventilation, under baseboards, on the back walls of cabinets and chests of drawers, and in sockets. Their bites cause an allergic reaction called chemipterosis.
An allergy to bedbugs can occur when their saliva enters the wound through a bite or inhalation of body scales, excrement, or skin particles along with dust. When biting, the parasite inserts 2 proboscis into the skin - one at a time, saliva enters the victim’s body, and the second, the insect sucks out blood. An “injection” with saliva is administered because of the analgesics it contains, thanks to which the victim does not feel pain from the bite and does not wake up, and also because of the ability of the substances included in its composition to thin the blood for more convenient suction. The allergen is a protein contained in the saliva of insects.
Symptoms of a bug bite
Bedbugs usually bite exposed parts of the body. The bite itself can manifest itself in different ways, depending on the individual characteristics of a particular organism. The redness is usually strong, the swelling is round in shape, and there is severe itching. Unlike harmless mosquito marks, bedbug bites are very painful and have clear outlines. Allergic reactions are possible, but in practice they are rare.
The spots that follow a bite are a reaction to saliva. The insect secretes it to make it easier to drink blood. It is because of this that the marks last long enough. When an adult bug bites, there may be no reaction for a long time; marks from young insects appear immediately. The reason for this phenomenon lies in the different composition of the saliva of adults and young individuals.
So, the main symptoms of bedbug bites are:
- swelling;
- itching;
- redness;
- grouped character.
Pay attention to the smells in the bed - if you crush a bedbug (you can do this accidentally), a characteristic smell will appear. Some say it is cognac, others say it is bitter almond. Parasites are especially active at night and early in the morning; people only see bites in the morning. During the day, insects usually sleep. The sensation of bites is subjective - for example, men have a reduced degree of sensitivity, women and children will be more painful. Bedbugs bite everyone - there is no selectivity, including taking into account blood type.
bedbug nest
The insect swallows twice as much food as its mass. At the top and bottom of the insect's body there is a proboscis - it is needed for piercing and sucking. When the insect is not looking for food, the trunk is pressed against the cephalothorax. After piercing the skin, the bug looks for a capillary in the victim’s body. He accurately senses the vibration of the blood in the vessels, so he bites correctly. There are a pair of channels in the proboscis - one sucks out blood, and the second throws out saliva. The saliva contains an anesthetic, so there is no pain during the bite. In one approach, an adult insect sucks out about 1.5 ml of blood, then moves a couple of centimeters and makes a new puncture. The average number of punctures per meal is no more than 5. The extracted volume of blood is enough for the bug to last a week. Young animals eat their fill in a few minutes, adults need about 15-20 minutes.
Development and course of allergies
Bedbugs go hunting at night, and if they bite a person while sleeping, then in the morning he may experience allergic manifestations of the body. They may be local in nature, for example, in the form of skin rashes. Such symptoms appear immediately or within 10-40 minutes, gradually intensifying after a few hours, and disappear within 24 hours.
Bedbug bites resemble skin rashes.
However, if you were bitten a second time, and the first time the allergy manifested itself with any symptoms, then there is a risk that repeated damage may cause a more severe reaction.
A large number of bites can cause intoxication and general systemic reactions in the form of dizziness, fever, intestinal disorders, headache, etc.
Severe anaphylactic reactions to a bug bite develop within 15-60 minutes; in such cases, the victim requires urgent medical attention.
Delayed reactions appear later; they can be observed after 2 hours (at least), and maximum after 3 weeks.
According to another scheme, the reaction manifests itself after 6-12 hours and intensifies after 2 days. Subsequently, within 2 months, a relapse may occur in the form of skin rashes, swelling, and bronchospasms.
Preventing bedbugs at home
Not a single person is safe from the arrival of these “bloodsuckers” in an apartment; they penetrate into apartment buildings, coming from neighbors, and into new mansions. In order to avoid the arrival of such “guests” as much as possible, to detect them faster and take urgent effective control measures, it is necessary to take preventive measures:
- Monitor and pay attention to the health of the entire family and especially children.
- Carry out periodic repairs, glue up torn wallpaper, seal and remove all cracks in the walls and baseboards, etc.
- If you have pets, pay attention to their hygiene, because they can bring “bloodsuckers” from the street.
- After returning from vacation or another city, you should wash all items in hot water or take them to dry cleaning.
- Place fragrant herbs in the house or use essential oils that will repel insects.
Important!
If a business traveler, spending the night in a hotel, feels a bedbug bite, then one should expect that the insects will definitely move into clothes at night, even folded in a suitcase. Therefore, when returning home, it is necessary to inspect and disinfect all underwear and outerwear, and, if necessary, treat it with boiling water or special chemicals.
Before the parasites multiply in gigantic quantities, causing a lot of trouble for all residents, it is necessary to get rid of bedbugs as quickly as possible.
Features of bites
If for some reason bedbugs are unable to feed at night (lack of sleeping victims, for example, in public places - shops, cafes, airports, offices, transport), then hunger forces them to do this during the day.
They are not afraid of daylight or artificial light and can hide in clothes.
Parasites feed collectively, so they leave many bites on the body, and each bug makes several punctures in the skin and drinks blood from each. As a result, a kind of “path” is formed of bites built in one line. Blood-sucking insects prefer open areas of the body with thin skin, where blood vessels are close: this makes it more convenient for them to drink blood. Favorite places are legs, back, neck, arms, shoulders, and less often – the face.
The bite looks like a swollen spot 2-5 mm in diameter with clearly defined edges.
What do bites look like?
Bed bugs are insects that feed on the blood of humans and animals. They have an oval body measuring 3-8 mm, the color depends on the amount of blood drunk and varies from light brown to red-black. The life cycle of the parasite is 1-1.5 years. The absorption of blood is for them the only nutrition necessary for life and further reproduction.
According to entomological experts, bedbug bites are very different in appearance from traces left by other insects, and can cause a lot of trouble to a person, interfering with a normal night's rest and affecting his performance.
On a note!
As can be seen in the photo of bed bug bites on human skin, their main difference is the grouping of several swellings, often located along a certain line. Usually the parasite makes 3-8 skin punctures in a row with a distance of 2-4 cm between adjacent ones.
Bed bug bites
If several bed bugs bite the skin in one place, a severe irritation will form that looks like a large red spot.
Symptoms of the disease
Not all people are prone to allergies; for some, bites do not cause any immune response. But in sensitive allergic people, manifestations can be either minor or fatal.
In allergic people, skin reactions are more pronounced.
Allergic reactions are divided into local and general, affecting the condition of the whole organism.
A common reaction to a bug bite is redness, urticarial rash (urticaria), swelling at the site of the bite, itching and irritation of the skin, turning into blisters (vesicular, or bullous, rash). Such local symptoms are harmless and disappear after a few days.
In addition to these symptoms, there are more alarming systemic reactions that indicate the onset of intoxication of the body: fever, nausea, insomnia, dizziness, pain in the head and joints, runny nose, weakness, difficulty breathing, increased heartbeat, swelling of the lips, eyelids, larynx, tongue, enlargement lymph nodes.
Such symptoms may indicate angioedema or anaphylactic shock, and the patient will require emergency medical care.
Manifestation of allergies in children
People of all ages become victims of bedbug bites, but children are bitten more often. Their delicate thin skin is more susceptible to attacks by blood-sucking insects, and the allergic reaction to bedbugs in children is more pronounced and more frequent than in adults.
The amount of parasite saliva that enters a child's body is the same as that of an adult, but children weigh less. This means that the concentration of the allergen in their bodies becomes higher and their immunity, which is not yet strong enough, cannot fight this amount as productively as in adults.
In children of different ages, be it an infant, a preschooler or a teenager, allergies can be equally severe.
An allergy to bedbug bites in a child makes itself felt immediately. Red itchy rashes form on the skin, the temperature rises, and the lips turn blue. It is important to promptly seek medical help to avoid anaphylactic shock.
If particles of skins or excrement get into the respiratory tract, then sneezing, coughing, lacrimation, and runny nose are observed.
Treatment must be started as soon as possible, since children may develop rhinitis, asthma, or the disease may become chronic.
The difference between a bite and an allergy
Very often, bedbug bites are mistaken for an allergic skin rash. Knowing the differences between bed bug bites and irritation caused by other reasons, you can easily identify them:
- redness of the skin after a bite is located along the path;
- in case of an allergic reaction, redness occurs in spots throughout the body, and not just in open areas;
- bite marks do not change color and size for quite a long time, and an allergy rash can change quickly;
- if other residents of the apartment also have a rash, this indicates the presence of parasites in the room.
The photographs below show images of an allergic reaction and bedbug bites in the form of a path.
Bedbug bites and allergic reaction
How to diagnose
Only a doctor can professionally diagnose allergies. You can independently identify the nature of the rash based on a number of signs:
- the bite sites look like very swollen red bumps;
- there are several bites, they are located nearby or lined up;
- the spots are very itchy;
- additional ailments arose in the form of fever, runny nose, dizziness, nausea, etc.
It is more difficult to independently diagnose the disease in children, because if there are only rashes on the body and no other symptoms are felt, then bedbug bites can be confused with damage from mosquitoes, ants, fleas, dermatitis, prickly heat, respiratory or food allergies . The latter especially concerns children who are introduced to complementary foods or new foods.
Take into account indirect signs indicating the presence of bedbugs in your bed: new bites appear in the morning after sleep, there is a cognac or almond aroma in the room (that’s what enzymes secreted by insects smell like), there are blood stains on the bed linen, and near the bed – dark colored particles (parasite excrement).
It is important to differentiate bedbug bites from bites of other insects.
Characteristic signs and symptoms of bites
Although bedbugs appear in apartments these days, they are rare, so most people have no idea what the bites of these blood-sucking parasites look like. Quite often, bedbug bites are confused with mosquito bites and, as a result, the fight against bedbugs begins too late.
There are 5 signs by which bedbug bites can be identified. Here they are:
- The bites of these blood-sucking parasites form a kind of “path” - this is when the bites are located almost on the same line, at a distance of several centimeters from one another.
- A distinctive feature of a bug bite is a red dot, which represents a dried drop of blood, indicating that the parasite managed to drink blood in this place.
- The bite site is characterized by severe, unbearable itching and, without special means, it is almost impossible to cope with this discomfort. In addition, swelling and redness appear around the wounds, which leads to the onset of the inflammatory process.
- By morning, small blood stains may be found on the bed. When a person turns over in bed at night, he crushes some parasites, which causes blood to appear on the bed linen.
- Bedding acquires an unpleasant odor, which is associated with the vital activity of these parasites, and characteristic dark spots can be seen on the walls and wooden parts of the bed - the result of the vital activity of bedbugs.
Note to everyone:
- Mosquitoes are easy to identify by their characteristic “mosquito” squeak, and bedbugs approach their prey almost silently.
- Mosquitoes are capable of terrorizing apartment owners every day, and bedbugs rarely feed, so their bites appear every 7-10 days.
- After a bug bite, a small drop of blood appears in the center of the wound, and the bite site itches unbearably, which cannot be said about mosquito bites. After a mosquito bite, no significant discomfort is felt.
- Mosquitoes are able to move quickly enough around a home, easily finding their prey, which cannot be said about bedbugs. They prefer to bite a person in one place. If suddenly the victim decides to change his position, the bugs will look for him for a long time.
How to Recognize Bed Bug Bites
Treatment of the disease
Only a doctor can accurately tell you about possible symptoms and treatment. In case of severe manifestations of allergies, you should consult a dermatologist or immunologist.
In adults
Treatment of allergies in adults includes taking medications to relieve unpleasant symptoms from a bite, reduce or prevent itching and redness. Medicines are presented in the form of tablets, ointments or gels.
Among the tableted antihistamines, one can highlight Suprastin, Loratadin, Tavegil, Diazolin, Telfast, Cetrin, Fenkarol, etc. Ointments and gels are used as topical agents to combat itching, such as Fenistil, Bepanten, Cikaderma, Advantan, Flucinar, Elidel, Psilo-balm, erythromycin ointment. To relieve unpleasant pain, intramuscular analgesics Baralgin and Analgin are used.
Expert opinion Maria Andreevna Senchishina Allergist-immunologist 11 years of experience in the clinic All drugs presented must be used after consultation with a doctor and according to the instructions. Pay attention to the age at which you can take this or that drug, as well as the dosage and method of administration.
External remedies quickly relieve symptoms.
There are folk remedies for relieving painful symptoms: a warm soothing bath for the skin, cold compresses, lotions with soda, solutions of chamomile, string, St. John's wort, and a decoction of oak bark. Apply fresh mint to itchy surfaces.
Treatment of allergies to bedbug bites
If there are no acute symptoms, it is possible to carry out self-therapy using antihistamines. They buy ointments and gels containing components for the treatment of allergies. They prevent complications, infections, and the formation of pustules.
Popular and effective means:
- ointments, including modern agents loratadine and cetirizine;
- Clarisens - syrup for children and tablets for adults - restore the immune system, reduces signs of allergies;
- Desloratadine - available in the same form, relieves swelling and other symptoms;
- tablets (Tavegil, Cetrin).
