What’s Biting You? Bed bugs, bat and bird bugs, kissing bugs …

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This developing article by Jerry Cates (with thanks to Wyatt G., Heather H., Rick L., Melinda B., Julie P., Joe & Jeanette I., et al.), was first published on 20 September 2013, and revised last on 10 November 2013. Bugsinthenews Vol. 14:09(01).

The information provided here covers some of the insects and arachnids that bite or otherwise cause bite-like lesions on humans and our companion pets. If you fall victim to any of these pests, it helps to know what you may be dealing with.

These days, the insect associated most often with human skin lesions is the common bed bug (Cimex lectularius). Most people who find newly-formed, itchy red welts several days in a row, especially after waking from a long nights sleep naturally jump to the conclusion that they have bed bugs. Often that is the case. Sometimes, though, it isnt.

Its one thing to actually see bed bugs on the floor, on the mattress or sheets, or on the bed frame, and to be able to distinguish them from other insects. But, if the offending agent or organism cannot be seen, or the observer doesnt possess the expertise needed to tell them apart from other organisms that bite people, it might help to read this article through and consider some of the other possibilities. What you learn may surprise you

Chemical and biological allergens, not to mention localized bacterial and viral infections, sometimes produce skin lesions similar to those caused by insect and spider bites. Further, an ordinary insect or spider bite that normally would not be noticed will, if infected, produce painful, reddened wounds. Contrary to popular opinion, it is generally not possible to determine, merely by examining the wound itself, what actually caused it.

Often, the primary determinant of how ones body reacts to an encounter with a foreign organism is the bodys immune response. Lets say an insect bites you, or alternatively something as seemingly innocent as the barbed hair from an insects body embeds itself in your skin. What happens next depends on how you react, internally, to the bite. If you have a robust immune system, the bite or embedded hair may produce a large, reddened, itchy wheal, but if your immune system is weak the same bite or hair may leave little or no outward evidence of injury.

A number of organisms besides bed bugs bite humans and our pets while were asleep. Some of the organisms typically found in our environment have hairs or setae on their bodies that, in susceptible individuals, are capable of producing skin lesions similar to those produced by bed bug, kissing bug, mosquito, mite or flea bites. A few of these are briefly described below:

1.Dermestid beetles, also known as skin, hide, larder, leather, carpet, and khapra beetles, do not generally bite humans, and dont feed on the blood of living animals. Their presence in homes or offices can cause skin wounds or lesions if an office worker or family member who is sensitive to their setae comes into contact with their live larval stages or the castings left behind when they molt. Immature stages, or larvae, of these insects are covered with varying lengths of setae, or hair-like, barbed and serrated spines that, for some species, are easily embedded in human skin. Sensitive individuals react to the embedded spines with an immune response that in many respects mimics the welts and wheals from bed bug, kissing bug, tick, flea, mite, and spider bites. In some cases the observed immune response is severe, particularly if a large number of the spines become embedded at a localized area of the skin. The result: dermestid beetle skin lesions, or DBSL.

Often DBSL afflicts only one office worker or family member, leaving others who occupy the same office or living space unaffected. The afflicted individual will present with a growing number of small to large lesions, ranging from light pink to dark red in color. As a result, a mistaken presumption is made that the afflicted person is being uniquely exposed to a mystery no-see-um bug that is concentrated specifically where that person works, sleeps, or studies. So, the thinking goes, once the no-see-um is eliminated from the afflicted members living spacei.e., their side of the bed, their bedroom, or the special place where they recline to watch television or study, the problem should be solved. In general, however, the risk of recurring DBSL can only be resolved completely by removing all dermestid beetles, including their larvae and the castings from their molts, from all areas of the affected office or home.