Bed bug bites on a person: photos, symptoms, treatment

There are many types of bedbugs, but in this article we will look at the specific type of bedbugs that interfere with sleep at night and lead a normal life. This type of bedbug is called a bed bug or Cimex lectularius (lat. Cimex lectularius).

Cimex lectularius feeds on human blood and the hunt for the alleged victim begins closer to 3 o'clock in the morning.

The bed bug settles, judging by the name, in the wooden structure of the bed or in its accessories: in the inside of the mattress, in pillows, in the upholstered component of furniture or toys.

Less often it hides in cracks on the floor, in paintings, watches and books. From the habitats of the bed bug, let's move on to the bites of these parasites.

Bedbug bites

Bedbug bites are not uncommon. It's just that sometimes many people confuse the bites of these parasites with the bites of other insects (mosquitoes, fleas, ticks, etc.).

Confusion arises especially when summer is outside and received mosquito bites at night. After all, from the bite of a bug and a mosquito, the same redness and itching on the skin remains.

How, then, to distinguish between them, who bit? Before moving on to the symptoms, consider a case where bedbug bites are confused with an allergy to something.

Bedbug bites in humans look like this (photo below).

Many people write off the redness and itching on the skin that suddenly appeared in the morning for allergies. This is the main problem.

Because the person will take medications for allergies, itch and do nothing. And the so-called allergy will spread to the skin and the person's condition will worsen every day.

Therefore, in order not to confuse bedbug bites with insect bites, no matter what a disease (hives for example) or with allergies, let's move on to the symptoms.

Symptoms

Indeed, bedbug bites are similar in characteristics to many insect bites (especially mosquitoes), but there are still differences. Before we move on to describing these symptoms, consider the structure of the proboscis and the way the bug feeds. Because without this, you and I will not understand many of the features of the life and nutrition of these parasites.

The adult Cimex lectularius has two tubules inside the proboscis. When he pierces the skin of a person with his proboscis, he first injects an anesthetic substance into the blood from one tubule (a natural secret). This substance numbes the place where the blood is sucked out and prevents it from clotting. A kind of natural local anesthesia.

For this reason, many people for a long time cannot even suspect that some parasites have appeared in them in the house and every night they dine with their blood, referring to food allergies, for example (in the evening something is wrong ate). Then there is little to do.

Just with the help of the second tubule, suck the required amount of blood into your body. But it is not enough for him to make one puncture in the skin. He has to make 3 - 5 punctures to be full. This is how nature came up with it.

Let's move on to the symptoms on human skin:

• redness on the skin in the form of a path;
• itching on the skin (and itching may not appear immediately);
• numerous wounds or tumors at the bite sites;
• closed and puffy transparent skin at the site of bite wounds, with whitish contents inside.

How bedbug bites look in a person who is not allergic to insect bites (normal view), look at the photo.

Moreover, the symptoms and obvious signs of bites may vary, depending on the characteristics of the victim's body.

If you are not allergic to insect bites, then there will be redness on the skin without any swelling, pustules and seals. Itching will appear closer to the morning, because the bug begins to feed, as mentioned above, closer to 3 a.m. and after a few hours the substance that anesthetized the bites will cease its effect.

The number of bites a person has depends on the number of bedbugs in the house. If you brought these parasites from work or from walking your dog in the park, then most likely there will not be many bites. Because the process of reproduction of these insects has not yet begun and some changes on the skin will not be very noticeable.

But if you came to visit your friend and he has an old bed or some other furniture, then quite it is possible that it is crammed with a whole swarm of bedbugs, which are already breeding quite actively and have been annoying the owner for a long time at home.

Numerous wounds and tumors at the site of bug bites may indicate a person's allergy. The skin on the ground will swell, the area of ​​wounds and redness will increase, pus will ooze from the wounds, because when severe itching, a person with not trimmed nails and not washed fingers will carry an infection that will worsen his condition health.

Skin irritations from multiple bug bites can spread in a completely healthy person (who does not have allergies).

The closed and puffy transparent skin at the site of the bug bites suggests that these are no longer fresh wounds from the bites of these insects. The protective function of the skin will cover open wounds with a thin film to prevent new infections from entering, and the whitish the contents under it, the accumulation of many dead blood leukocytes, which died, fighting the infection that got on the open wounds.

Many sites about bedbugs say that they are carriers of dangerous infectious diseases, such as:

• smallpox;
• tuberculosis;
• typhoid;
• anthrax;
• brucellosis;
• hepatitis B;
• plague;
• malaria, etc.

But there are no scientifically proven facts about the disease of specific people with these diseases from the bites of Cimex lectularius.

Also, the myth that bed bugs only bite women and children, due to the fact that they have thin and delicate skin, is not true.

The bug bites through exactly those places where the layer of skin is the thinnest; both women and men have such places. After all, if you look at bedbug bites on a person (see. photo above), it can be seen that the bug left bites on the arms, legs, face, neck, abdomen, soft spots on the back (near the kidneys). That is, in those places where there is no thick layer of skin on the body. But there are no bites on the feet, palms.

One bug bite or even several will not give any strong consequences on the human body, even if he is allergic to insect bites. The situation changes in a completely different direction, when bedbug bites in a child or an adult reach tens or hundreds of times in the number of punctures on the skin.

From external symptoms on the skin, let's move on to the exact signs of bedbugs in the house.

How to find out bugs are found at home?

The main sign of a swarm of bedbugs in your home is the characteristic smell of brandy or sour raspberries. But this is if there are really a lot of bedbugs at home.

Small amounts of bedbugs can leave traces of your blood on the sheet.

Important! Check the sheets carefully after a hostel bed or after an overnight stay. This will prevent bedbugs from entering your home and prevent the potential effects of bites on your body.

Possible consequences on the body from numerous bug bites

Basically, numerous bug bites are not so dangerous for the human body if it is not allergic to insect bites. It's another matter when there is an allergy. Then it may occur:

• headache;
• nausea;
• vomit;
• inflammation of the mucous membranes;
• problems with the respiratory tract (up to respiratory arrest);
• emergence anaphylactic shock;
• loss of consciousness;
• formation of numerous blisters, bumps on the skin (urticaria).

Treatment

Bedbug bites in children and adults do not require any special treatment. The consequences of the bites of these parasites disappear in three days.

Bedbug bites in an infant are also not classified as dangerous if there are no allergic reactions. But first aid to alleviate the consequences of bites in the early days will still be required. First of all, you need to relieve itching, which will not allow you to sleep peacefully at night. This will require:

• wash combed wounds from bites with clean cool water, while using antibacterial soap, skin lotion, or the best option would be to wipe the bites with alcohol;
• bite sites are recommended to be treated with a solution baking soda;
• make a compress from ice and a gauze bandage (it is better, of course, to rub ice into places where there is itching). Do not apply a compress of ice and a gauze bandage for a long time, our goal is to relieve itching, and not to overcool the victim's body).

Preparations and medicinal plants

If a person has clear signs of allergy to insect bites, it is necessary to give him an anti-allergenic drug (Diphenhydramine, Cetirizine, Dimetindene). And repeat the same steps as described above.

From home medicinal plants, you will need the juice of aloe, St. John's wort, lemon, or chamomile. If their juice is rubbed into the skin at the site of the bites, then the itching will pass over time and the irritation of the skin will stop.

It is recommended to lubricate wounds from bed bug bites with ointments, which include cortisone or hydrocortisone. These ointments have antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects.

Very helps with bites not only bed bugs, but also with the bites of other insects - Vietnamese ointment "Star“. This ointment will not only relieve inflammation at the site of bug bites, but will also contribute to the rapid regeneration of damaged skin.

List of drugs with a fast-acting effect for acute inflammation and skin lesions:

• Ointment Rescuer;
• Hydrocortisone ointment (the drug is a strong anti-allergenic agent, it is recommended to rub it into the skin 1 to 3 times a day);
• Gel Fenistil;
• Hyoxysone ointment (completely relieves inflammation of any complexity, the effects of allergies on the skin, elimination of infection introduced through the wounds. The product is applied in a thin layer to the skin, 3 times a day, until a positive effect is obtained);
• Afloderm cream (cream with antibacterial and antiallergenic properties, effectively eliminates itching. Apply and rub on the skin in small portions).

Advice: in case of severe allergic reactions, do not self-medicate, but immediately contact an experienced specialist in order to avoid a total outcome.

Destruction of bedbugs

The service for the destruction of parasites in apartments and houses will help you to permanently remove Cimex Lectularius, which will conduct a thorough disinsection of all rooms in your house. And even so, bed bugs can survive and continue to reproduce.

Then, in this case, you need to call the service for the destruction of parasites again and re-carry out pest control until the bed bugs are completely destroyed.

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