Robert Gay, ACVCSD

Bed Bugs and Their Bites

“Good Night, Sleep Tight, Don’t let the bed bugs bite!”

Pierce through the skin to obtain blood meals

Feed from one host to another host without discrimination

Bed Bugs

Are able to travel far and disperse quickly

Live in close proximity to humans

Airline Travel

Theoretically, bed bugs appear to be great candidates for disease vectors.

However, to date, there has been no conclusive evidence that shows bed bugs biologically or mechanically transmit any diseases.

Bacillus anthracis (anthrax) Borellia recurrentis (relapsing

fever) Brucella melitensis (brucellosis) Coxiella burnetii (Q fever) Fracisella tularensis (tularemia) Leptospira spp (leptospirosis) Mycobacterium tuberculosis

(tuberculosis) Rickettsia typhi Salmonella typhi (salmonella) Streptococcus pneumonia

(pneumonia) Staphylococcus aureus

Yersinia pestis (plague) Wuchereria Parasites (filariasis) Leismania tropica Plasmodium spp Trypanosoma cruzi Hepatitis B, C, E HIV Influenza Polio Rabies Variola (smallpox) Yellow fever

Bed bugs have been accused of transmitting nearly 45 different pathogens.

. A few familiar ones:

Hepatitis B

HIV

Has never been found in wild bed bugs.In an experiment, HIV was detected up

to 8 days in bed bugs fed with the virus, but was never found to replicate.

Has not been found in bed bug feces, Little persistence of the pathogen.

HIV transmission

Has been detected in wild bed bugs.In an experiment, HBV was detected up

to 2 months after an infectious meal or after direct injection, but no viral replication.

Found bed bugs were able to maintain the pathogen between molting, but did not find the pathogen in the salivary glands.

Hepatitis B transmission

Bed bugs do not exhibit the three developmental requirement of biological transmission:

a) multiplicationb) developmental changesc) combination of the two

Why are they not good disease vectors?

Large intervals of time between feedings. Allows for digestion, molting, and oviposition which is a disadvantage to the pathogens

Traumatic insemination may play a role in building immune responses in females

Live in relatively “sterile environment” to be mechanical vectors

Skin reaction to bitesAllergic reactionsMental & emotional distressEconomic impact

Public Health Importance

Skin reaction to bites

Public Health Importance

Skin Reactions to Bed Bug Bites

1. Victims may be asymptomatic.

2. For most people, bites itch intensely.

3. Scratching bites can cause tissue damage & scars

4. Scratching can also introduce secondary infections (e.g., MRSA, or other microbes)

Initial bite reaction

Image above by Dr. Mark Feldlaufer

Biting Insects - Indoors

Flea Bites

Tropical Rat Mite Bites

Bed bug Bites

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

Skin reaction to bitesAllergic reactions

Public Health Importance

Depending on host immune response and sensitivity, allergic reactions can range from people who are asymptomatic, asthmatic, or anaphylactic.

Bullous eruptions have also been reported in association with multiple bed bug bites.

Allergic Reaction

Bed Bugs (C. lectularius) can cause Asthma (& make it worse)

_______________________

Abou Gamra, E., F. el Shayed, T. Morsy, H. Hussein, and E. Shehata . 1991. The relation between Cimex lectularius antigen and bronchial asthma in Egypt. J. Egyptian Soc. Parasitol. 21: 735-746 (Dec.).

Skin reaction to bitesAllergic reactionsMental & emotional distressEconomic impact

Public Health Importance

Entomophobia “I’m scared of bed bugs”

Bringing bed bugs into your home, car, or the office.How to tell the family, neighbors, & friends.

FEAR FACTOR!

Mental & Emotional Distress

Unable to sleep!

Sleep deprivation

Although evidence for disease transmission

by bed bugs is inconclusive, issues of:vector competence, reactions to insect bites, embarrassment, and mental anguish

have been the basis for lawsuits against

landlords and lodging corporations.

Economic impact

“Although bed bugs are not known to transmit disease, they are a pest of significant public health importance.”

-EPA & CDC Joint Statement

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Joint statement on bed bug control in the United States from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; 2010.

In conclusion