Bed Bugs Treatment

Since most bed bugs are carried by travelers through contact with beds and hotel rooms in infected locations, certain measures taken while traveling help in control of bed bugs:

• Examining the room for potential hiding places of bed bugs, such as carpet edges, mattress seams, pillow case linings, bedboards, wall trim or other tiny crevices in which bed bugs could hide.
• Looking specifically at the mattress seams for signs of bed bug activity: droppings, eggs, bloodstains or even bed bugs themselves, hiding in tiny folds and seam lines.
• Keeping a flashlight nearby while sleeping to immediately observe suspected activity during the night without having to get up out of bed which would otherwise give them time to hide in safety.
• Not leaving clothing lying on the bed, or any location of possible infestation (as mentioned above) and instead, using hangers or hooks capable of keeping all cloth distant from the floor or bed. Suspend new shopping in bags the same way.
• Closing all luggage (suitcase, travel bag etc.) when not in use. This way, during the night the bugs may move over the top of the bags and have difficulty getting inside.
• Elevating luggage off the floor to luggage stand, tables or chairs, although these can also be hiding places.

Quick summary on bed bugs

They are reddish-brown, flattened, oval, wingless insect and are up to 1/4 of an inch long. Nymphs must feed on blood to grow, shedding skins as they develop in a process called molting. They infest all types of facilities and living environments, even the most expensive, luxurious homes.

Sanitation and cleanliness have no bearing on their presence. An adult can survive 400+ days without a blood meal; nymphs 3 months.

This means they can travel great distances in bags, boxes, furniture, and luggage, awaiting their new home and host. Bed bugs like to hide in seams and cracks and crevices.

Evidence of an infestation will be tiny black speckled droppings, molted skins, and eggs

Bites and reactions vary from person to person depending upon how allergic a given individual is to the saliva injected at the time of feeding. Bed bug saliva acts as an analgesic and anti-coagulant, allowing the bug to feed efficiently while preventing the host from feeling pain or discomfort while being bitten so the bugs can go undetected while they are feeding.