What are bedbugs?
Bedbugs are blood-sucking parasites 5 to 6 mm in size as adults. There are several species. In the decades after the Second World War bedbugs seemed almost entirely eradicated in Western Europe and North America, but over the last decade or so they have made a seemingly unstoppable comeback. They are found especially in bedrooms — in hotels and guesthouses, but increasingly in private homes too. These flat-bodied insects can hide in small crevices in and around the bed and wait until their prey, a person, is asleep; they then emerge and pierce the skin with their proboscis to suck blood, being most active about an hour before sunrise. This causes itchy red bumps similar to mosquito bites.
What does a bedbug bite look like?
When the bedbug bites to suck blood, an itchy bump develops. The bite is typically a red spot with a small central bump around the bite site, where the puncture opening is still visible. Usually several bumps are found together. Very classic are the “breakfast, lunch and dinner” bites: 3 bites from one bedbug in a row.
What does the bedbug look like?
The bedbug begins its life cycle as an egg, white and about 1 mm long. After 10 days the egg hatches and the small bedbug goes through 5 stages over the next 6 weeks. All stages feed on blood sucked from human skin through a piercing mouthpart. Before sucking, the bedbug injects saliva containing an anti-clotting agent and various proteins that can lead to a hive-like reaction with itch. Feeding takes 2 to 12 minutes and lasts longer the older and larger the bedbug. Bedbugs can survive up to a year without a blood meal, and the females lay 200–300 eggs in their lifetime.
Are bedbugs dangerous?
Unlike many other biting insects, bedbugs seem barely able to transmit diseases from person to person. In rare cases the substances in the injected saliva can cause serious allergic (shock) reactions.
How is a bedbug bite treated?
The itchy spots disappear on their own. For severe itch, a corticosteroid cream can be applied.
How can I prevent bedbugs?
- When taking a hotel room, check the beds, especially under the mattress.
- Put your suitcase on the special luggage racks provided, not on the floor, so you do not take any bedbugs home as a “souvenir”.
- Bedbugs produce a characteristic penetrating smell; once you know it, you can recognise a “risk room” on entering.
When to see a doctor
See a doctor if bites become very itchy, infected from scratching, or if you have a severe allergic reaction; pest control is needed to clear an infestation.