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What medicine is good for bed bug bites: Bed bugs: Tips for preventing

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Bed bugs: Tips for preventing

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Bed bugs: Who gets and causes

Diseases & conditions



  • Coronavirus Resource Center



  • Acne



  • Eczema



  • Hair loss



  • Psoriasis



  • Rosacea



  • Skin cancer



  • A to Z diseases



  • A to Z videos

  • DIY acne treatment

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  • Skin care: Acne-prone skin

  • Causes

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  • Types & treatments

  • Childhood eczema

  • Adult eczema

  • Insider secrets

  • Types of hair loss

  • Treatment for hair loss

  • Causes of hair loss

  • Hair care matters

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  • What is psoriasis

  • Diagnosis & treatment

  • Skin, hair & nail care

  • Triggers

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  • What is rosacea

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  • Types and treatment

  • Find skin cancer

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  • Raise awareness

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  • Sun protection



  • Hair & scalp care



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  • Basic skin care

  • Dry, oily skin

  • Hair removal

  • Tattoos and piercings

  • Anti-aging skin care

  • For your face

  • For your skin routine

  • Preventing skin problems

  • Bites & stings

  • Burns, cuts, & other wounds

  • Itch relief

  • Poison ivy, oak & sumac

  • Rashes

  • Shade, clothing, and sunscreen

  • Sun damage and your skin

  • Aprenda a proteger su piel del sol

  • Your hair

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  • Nail care basics

  • Manicures & pedicures

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Relieve uncontrollably itchy skin

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Darker Skin Tones



  • Skin care secrets



  • Hair care



  • Hair loss



  • Diseases & Conditions

  • Acne

  • Dark spots

  • Dry skin

  • Light spots

  • Razor bumps

  • Caring for Black hair

  • Scalp psoriasis

  • Weaves & extensions

  • Central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia

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  • Hairstyles that pull can cause hair loss

  • Acanthosis nigricans

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  • Keloid scars

  • Lupus and your skin

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  • Skin cancer

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  • More diseases & conditions

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Cosmetic treatments



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  • Age spots & dark marks



  • Cellulite & fat removal



  • Hair removal



  • Scars & stretch marks



  • Wrinkles



  • Younger-looking skin

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Botox

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Public health programs



  • Skin cancer awareness



  • Free skin cancer screenings



  • Kids’ camp



  • Good Skin Knowledge



  • Shade Structure grants



  • Skin Cancer, Take a Hike!™



  • Awareness campaigns



  • Flyers & posters



  • Get involved

  • Lesson plans and activities

  • Community grants

Featured




Free materials to help raise skin cancer awareness

Use these professionally produced online infographics, posters, and videos to help others find and prevent skin cancer.



Dermatologist-approved lesson plans, activities you can use

Free to everyone, these materials teach young people about common skin conditions, which can prevent misunderstanding and bullying.

Find a dermatologist



  • Find a dermatologist



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  • FAAD: What it means



  • How to select a dermatologist



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Featured




Find a Dermatologist

You can search by location, condition, and procedure to find the dermatologist that’s right for you.



What is a dermatologist?

A dermatologist is a medical doctor who specializes in treating the skin, hair, and nails. Dermatologists care for people of all ages.

Ointments and creams for bed bug bites: what to choose?

A home first aid kit is an attribute due to which the minimum set of medicines is always at hand. Means with antipyretic, analgesic and antihistamine effect are only a part of all the essentials. A worthy company for them will be an effective and proven over the years ointment from insect bites. It will help you out in the most unpredictable situations, relieve irritation and itching, and most importantly, it will save you even while you are outside your home.

Why buy a special agent?

Bedbug bites are not the most dangerous phenomenon, except for the attack of exotic species, but very unpleasant. Only in some cases, when the victim is initially predisposed to an increased reaction of the body to an irritating factor, a severe form of allergy may occur. However, in practice this is very rare. Often, such skin lesions cause severe itching, provoking further scratching of the wound. There is a high risk of introducing a secondary infection into it, which means causing inflammation.

That is why all doctors agree in one opinion: bed bug bites should never be left without due attention. Moreover, it is not recommended to resort to folk methods. Yes, some of them have the right to exist. The same soda bags will help relieve itching. But otherwise, there is nothing better than a special antiseptic and wound healing agent.

The best assistants in the fight against bedbug bites: general characteristics and popular representatives

As a rule, stings of house bugs neutralize concentrated ointments, creams and gels. In their effectiveness, they are no different from each other, but with the consistency and some features of the application, the situation is somewhat different. The most dense means is considered ointment. It is absorbed for a long time and has a long effect on human skin. Can leave marks on clothes, but is ideal for dry skin. The cream has a lighter formula, it is considered a somewhat simplified version of the ointment. Among its advantages, one can single out good absorbency, which allows you to use the product immediately before going out. As for the gel, the same concentration of the active substance is involved in it, but already diluted in a water base.

All drugs can be divided into two large groups. The first one is for mild and moderate skin lesions:

  • Psilo-Balm – the base contains diphenhydramine, which reduces the severity of allergic reactions. Thanks to it, bedbug bites on the body become less swollen, redness decreases, and the possibility of developing inflammatory processes is excluded. When applied, it has a cooling effect, which in turn relieves itching.

  • Fenistil Gel – perfectly copes with the task of healing wounds. Relieves inflammation and itching in a short period of time. The active ingredient in the form of dimethindene maleate serves as a kind of barrier to the penetration of infections. This invisible film reliably protects the damaged area of ​​the skin until it heals. As a result, the possibility of suppuration is completely excluded.
  • Rescuer – different natural composition and guaranteed hypoallergenicity. Produced in two formats at once: children’s and adult. The basis of the whole formula is beeswax, which softens the skin and has an extremely beneficial effect on it. Tea tree oil, along with other components, soothes, relieves irritation and promotes rapid healing of wounds.

The second group, as you might guess, is for severe skin lesions. Here, the standard itching and redness develop into something more: severe swelling of the affected area, shortness of breath, severe headache or dizziness, swelling, roughness at the bite site. In this case, self-medication is contraindicated. Only a qualified specialist will be able to choose the right treatment regimen and prescribe all the necessary drugs.

Please note that the remedies below should not be taken without first consulting a doctor. All information is for informational purposes only!

  • Hydrocortisone ointment is a hormonal drug based on hydrocortisone. Eliminates any consequences of bedbug bites almost instantly. The main feature is that in addition to its anti-inflammatory effect, the ointment also relieves any form of allergy. The only drawback is the ability of hydrocortisone to accumulate in the liver and skin structures, although over time it is excreted along with the bile.

  • Advantan – appropriate for any manifestations of skin allergies. Suppresses inflammatory processes and reduces their existing symptoms. Effectively relieves itching, heals wounds, removes redness. It does not apply to hormonal drugs, therefore it can be prescribed even to pregnant and lactating women, but only after a visit to the doctor.

Video:

How to get rid of bedbugs and their bites: all means

Bedbugs in the house are an unpleasant phenomenon, but it is quite possible to deal with it. How to detect bedbugs in the house, what their bites look like, what means will definitely help get rid of bedbugs – RBC-Nedvizhimost understands together with an expert

Photo: Shutterstock

Bed bugs are not a thing of the past. These parasites can appear in any apartment, and its social status is completely unimportant for bloodsuckers.

  • How to understand that there are bugs at home
  • How to detect bed bugs
  • How to get rid of bed bugs

Experts in this article

  • Maria Boyko, PhD, gastroenterologist, therapist of the Semeynaya clinic network
  • Petr Fisenko, Disinfector Specialist, Dez_Hunter Disinfection Service

adv. rbc.ru

How to understand that there are bed bugs at home

Bed bug is a blood-sucking insect. About 0.5 cm in size, dark yellow or brown. The body is flattened – this shape helps in most cases not to be crushed, for example, when a person turns in a dream. A well-fed parasite is less mobile and more rounded. This nocturnal insect attacks during sleep, when the victim is as relaxed and defenseless as possible.

Manifestation of a bug bite – a blister of about 2-5 mm

(Photo: Casey Nye/Flickr.com)

They can appear for a variety of reasons. Cleanliness and constant hygiene of the premises, of course, reduce the risk of infection, but also not a panacea. An insect can be brought on shoes, building materials, from any crowded places.

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What bedbug bites look like

One of the first signs that bedbugs live in the house is the appearance of bites on the body. Since the insect moves along the body in the process of saturation, the wounds are located nearby, most often in a chain. One bloodsucker can put about three to five wounds.

Insect stings can cause a severe allergic reaction: they become inflamed and enlarged, and sometimes the temperature may rise. However, in some people they do not appear at all. This does not mean that the bugs bite selectively, it’s just that the body does not always give out a reaction.

Maria Boyko, Candidate of Medical Sciences, gastroenterologist, therapist of the Semeynaya clinic network:

— Bed bugs painlessly bite exposed skin at night and are rarely noticed by victims. Bites usually occur on the face, neck, and hands. Some people do not react, and the only sign of a bite is a small dot. It has been observed that they are less common in older people.

The classic manifestation of a bug bite is a blister about 2-5 mm, which is most often accompanied by itching. Some patients have asymptomatic purplish spots at the bite sites, which may also present as hives.

Skin reactions may appear on waking or a few days after bites. Usually bites disappear after a week.

If the bites become infected, see a doctor immediately. Treatment of such complications can take several weeks.

The causative agents of some diseases, such as hepatitis B virus, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and others, have been found in bedbugs, but no clinical transmission of these diseases to humans has been identified.

It is believed that a bedbug-infested apartment smells like nutmeg or cheap cognac. But with a small accumulation of these insects, it may not smell like anything.

How to detect bed bugs

  1. Carefully check bedding. Bedbugs leave excrement – small black dots. You can also see tiny traces of blood after bites.
  2. Since these insects are active at night, they can be seen around four or five in the morning if the lights are turned on. It is during this period that they crawl out.
  3. Be sure to check the possible habitat of parasites. The bloodsucker tries to stay closer to the power source, so it most often hides in the seams of the mattress, sofa, upholstery – not far from the bed. But they can also hide in places where they are unlikely to be disturbed: in baseboards, cracks or behind pieces of peeled wallpaper, paintings, carpets.
  4. Even if the insects themselves are not visible, discarded chitin shells remain in their habitats.

Discarded chitin shells remain in their habitats

(Photo: Shutterstock)

How to get rid of bed bugs

The ideal temperature for bed bugs is +20–30 °С. Therefore, its significant change can kill them. But they are quite tenacious and in uncomfortable conditions are able to slow down life processes – fall into a state resembling suspended animation, without needing food for months.

1. Apply heat

A mark on the thermometer over 45 °C is fatal for bed bugs and their larvae [1]. Therefore, boiling or washing clothes at a high temperature for at least 30 minutes will help get rid of them. The higher the temperature, the sooner and more likely the insect will die.

Other items must be carefully treated with a steamer or iron. Heat guns will also help in cleansing the house of parasites.

In summer, you can pack your things in black bags and take them out into the sun.

But the death of bugs will come only in direct contact with heat, if during processing they hide deeper from the heat source, then the temperature increase will be non-fatal for him.

Ultraviolet rays are also harmful to these insects. Therefore, drying household items in the sun will also help.

2. Exposure to cold

Bed bugs can survive temperatures as low as -10°C for about three weeks [2]. To quickly destroy them, you need to lower the temperature: larvae and adult insects die at -16 ˚C in 82, and at -24 ˚C – in 24 hours. Things can be placed in the freezer or taken outside if it’s cold outside.

Significant change in temperature can kill bed bugs

(Photo: Shutterstock)

3. Use popular bedbug remedies

  • Vinegar. He can help, but only if they flood the nest itself. It is mainly used for scaring. In the manufacture of home remedies for bedbugs, vinegar is mixed with ethyl alcohol and naphthalene.
  • Turpentine. It can only be used on hard surfaces away from fire, as it is flammable. The smell of the substance is unpleasant and weathered for a long time. The product may leave stains.
  • Ammonia diluted in water. Spray on surfaces. This should only be done with the windows open.
  • Kerosene can also help control bed bugs. Paper or cloth moistened with a substance is placed on all points of possible insect habitat.
  • Boric acid. The powder is scattered in places where parasites are located.
  • If these methods did not help, then chemistry is indispensable. Bed bug aerosols and powders are available in almost all stores. The result from their use is about the same.

4. Disinfect from bedbugs

The most effective way is to contact a specialist. Before the arrival of the disinfector, prepare the apartment.

It is necessary to do a thorough damp cleaning, curtains, bed linen and clothes to wash at a high temperature (at least 60 degrees). You also need to move the furniture away from the walls and cover all the equipment (so that the solution does not damage). You will also have to de-energize the wiring in order to be able to process the sockets. Remove dishes and food in advance.

You will need water to make a bed bug solution, so you must not block access to it.

Petr Fisenko, Dez_Hunter Disinfection Specialist:

— Bed bugs can appear anywhere. They live next to people. When there are a lot of them, part of the population remains to live where it was, and the rest go to neighbors through communications, ventilation holes, cracks.

Do I need to apply to the management company? According to SanPiN, management companies must carry out disinfestation of basements and garbage chambers. But the apartment is the area of ​​responsibility of the residents.

Many, having noticed bed bugs in the house, begin to fight with their own methods. For example, use lavender. But if we take into account the fact that resistance (the so-called immunity) to professional chemicals is growing in parasites every year, then, alas, the smell of lavender will not destroy them. But you can try to protect your home from migration from neighboring premises, since the smell of lavender has some deterrent effect for these parasites. For example, you can lay out bags of lavender in linen drawers and in baseboards along the walls adjacent to “suspicious” neighbors.

Also, I do not advise you to get rid of bedbugs with the help of products bought in ordinary stores. They do not act on the entire part of the population, because the active substances are diluted there in very small quantities. Only a specialist can maintain the correct concentration of the substance in order to kill all the bugs.

Folk methods, it seems to me, are completely irrelevant and do not help. If you notice bites, you need to contact a specialist.

Bed bugs are one of the most difficult parasitic insects to breed. First, they are not immediately visible to the naked eye. Secondly, they multiply very quickly and for a long time (more than a year) they can do without food (blood). Thirdly, they adapt very well to insecticides (chemical preparations). Several active ingredients have to be used.

If the apartment is heavily infested, spot disinfection is carried out. After two to three weeks, the procedure is repeated for prevention and can be carried out two to three times.