Bed bug control techniques – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Bed bugs, or cimicidae, are small parasitic insects. The term usually refers to species that prefer to feed on human blood.

Early detection and treatment are critical to successful control. According to a survey, the most commonly infested places are the mattress (98.2%), boxspring (93.6%), as well as nearby carpets and baseboards (94.1%).[1] In fact, bed bugs thrive in areas where there is an adequate supply of available hosts, and plenty of cracks and harborages within 1.5 metres (4.9ft) of the host.[2]

Because treatments are required in sleeping areas and other sensitive locations, methods other than chemical pesticides are in demand. Treatments can be costly, laborious, time consuming, repetitive, may entail health risks, and cause embarrassment to the person affected.

Bed bug infestations spread easily in connecting units and have negative effects on psychological well-being and housing markets. In response, many areas have specific laws about responsibilities upon discovering a bed bug infestation, particularly in hotels and multi-family housing units, because an unprofessional level of response can have the effect of prolonging the invisible part of the infestation and spreading it to nearby units. Common laws include responsibilities such as the following: Lessors must educate all lessees about bedbugs, lessee must immediately notify lessor in writing upon discovery of infestation, lessor must not intentionally lease infested unit, lessee must not intentionally introduce infested items, lessor must eradicate the infestation immediately every time it occurs at a professional level including all connecting units, and lessee must cooperate in the eradication process.[citation needed]

An example of how epidemic bed bug infestation can become in densely populated areas is the Bed Bug Registry. Mapped bed bug reports graphically illustrate how difficult it can be to eliminate bed bugs where many people live in adjacent units like in New York City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

Though commonly used, the pesticide approach often requires multiple visits and may not always be effective due to pesticide resistance and dispersal of the bed bugs. According to a 2005 survey, only 6.1% of companies claim to be able to eliminate bed bugs in a single visit, while 62.6% claim to be able to control a problem in 23 visits.[1] Insecticide application may cause dispersal of bed bugs to neighbouring areas of a structure, spreading the infestation. Furthermore, the problem of insecticide resistance in bed bug populations increases their opportunity to spread. Studies of bed bug populations across the United States indicate that resistance to pyrethroid insecticides, which are used in the majority of bed bugs cases, is widespread.[1][3]Exterminators often require individuals to dispose of furniture and other infested materials. It is advisable to break or mark these infested items to prevent their being unintentionally recycled and furthering the spread of bed bugs.

The well-established resistance of bed bugs to DDT and pyrethroids has created a need for different and newer chemical approaches to the extermination of bed bugs. In 2008 a study was conducted on bed bug resistance to a variety of both old and new insecticides, with the following results, listed in order from most- to least-effective: -cyhalothrin, bifenthrin, carbaryl, imidacloprid, fipronil, permethrin, diazinon, spinosyn, dichlorvos, chlorfenapyr,and DDT.[4] Note that the first of these, -cyhalothrin, is itself a pyrethroid-based insecticide in the past, however, it has been used principally for the treatment of cotton crops and so bed bugs have not developed a genetic resistance to it.

Non-residue methods of mattress treatment are desired in place of contaminating mattresses with insecticides. Furthermore, other methods such as vacuuming must often be used in conjunction with pesticides to fully eradicate bed bugs. Spraying the mattress with insecticide is undesirable as the room must be suitably ventilated, sufficient time must be given after application before the mattress can be used again and there is a risk of the user having an allergic reaction to the chemicals, not to mention other possible health risks including cancer[5] and acute neurotoxicity.[6][7][8]

Concerns over the possible health effects of pesticides on people and pets, as well as the dispersal of bed bugs to neighbouring dwellings due to repellent effects of insecticides, make the practice of chemically treating the mattresses problematic.

Bed bugs are developing resistance to various pesticides including DDT and organophosphates.[9][10] Some populations have developed a resistance to pyrethroid insecticides. Although now often ineffective, the resistance to pyrethroid allows for new chemicals that work in different ways to be investigated, so chemical management can continue to be one part in the resolving of bed bug infestations.[11] There is growing interest in both synthetic pyrethroid and the pyrrole insecticide, chlorfenapyr. Insect growth regulators, such as hydroprene (Gentrol), are also sometimes used.[12]

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Bed bug control techniques - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia