askthedoctor They’re Back T
Equal Opportunity Remember, bedbugs aren’t a sign of poor hygiene or filth. Any household, in any economic tier, can get them, as can any hotel.
48 MILITARY OFFICER MAY 2011
Rare since the 1950s, bedbugs are reemerging as a pest. Rear Adm. Joyce Johnson, D.O., explains what they do, how to detect them — and how you can get rid of them.
The common bedbug, Cimex lectu- larius, is a small parasitic insect that feeds on warm-blooded animals. It resembles an apple seed in color, shape, and size (be- tween 1/16 and 1/4 inch). Bedbugs generally feed on people but also might bite dogs and cats. Bedbugs hide in narrow spaces such as folds in mattresses, cracks in walls, or beneath peeling wallpaper. They come out to feed and then retreat. They prefer to stay within about 8 feet of their feeding area but can travel more than 100 feet in a night. A bedbug feeding typically takes fi ve to 10 minutes. Before feeding, bedbugs inject an anesthetic (to numb the bite) and an an- ticoagulant. Some people have no reaction to a bite. Others might develop a red itchy bump over the course of several days to a week or more. Bedbug bites lack the charac- teristic red center of a fl eabite. Though the bites might be uncomfortable, bedbugs are not known to spread any specifi c disease. Bedbugs will feed several times a
week if they can, but they can go several months without feeding, especially in cooler temperatures. An adult bug can live 10 months. Bedbugs are prolifi c; in usual household conditions, about 80 percent to 90 percent of off spring sur- vive. The number of bedbugs in a home can double every 16 days.
Bedbugs can come into a home on al-
most any item, including clothes, suitcas- es, books, and used mattresses. Signs of bedbugs include itchy bites on the skin, reddish-brown spots of excrement on
bedding (especially pillows), and actual bugs in mattress creases or other places. Because bedbugs hide, reproduce ef-
fi ciently, and live a long time without food, it is diffi cult to eradicate them. The best approach combines pesticides and environ- mental control. If you live in an apartment or a condo building, it is helpful if residents attack the problem together. Call a licensed exterminator for an assessment of the prob- lem and safe chemical treatment options. It can take several chemical applications and continued vigilance to eliminate bedbugs. Treat items that might be infested.
Wash clothes and linens in the hottest water and dry them thoroughly at high heat. Iron with a hot iron, if possible. If you take clothing or linens to the dry cleaners, wrap them in sealed plastic bags and tell the cleaners about the problem so they can keep it from spreading. Wrap mattresses and box springs airtight in plastic for a year, or discard them and purchase new ones. Replace torn or peeling wallpaper and
caulk areas where bedbugs can hide. Re- move clutter around beds, and discard books, papers, and other items in plastic bags labeled “bedbugs.” If items can’t be discarded, heat them or freeze them for two weeks in a sealed plastic bag.
MO
— Rear Adm. Joyce Johnson, USPHS-Ret., D.O., M.A., is vice president, Health Sciences, Battelle Memorial Institute, Arlington, Va. Find more health and wellness resources at www
.moaa.org/wellness. For submission information, see page 18.
PHOTO: STEVE BARRETT
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