Bedbugs Back On The Rise In the U.S.

Although bedbugs were virtually eradicated in the United States by the 1960s, increased international travel and restrictions on pesticides have caused a resurgence in places ranging from nursing homes to dormitories to movie theaters. In fact, travelers who carry the insects in their luggage and clothing are the most common recipients of bites.

The National Pest Management Association has reported a 71-percent increase in bedbug infestation in the U.S. since 2001.

Bedbugs leave a bite similar in appearance to that from a mosquito, which takes 10 to 14 days to surface. Once the itching starts, the bite normally lasts for about a month.

While bothersome, a recent U.S. study found bedbugs rarely, if ever, transmit disease. Systemic reactions have been reported but are rare.

According to researchers, the name "bedbug" can actually be misleading.

"They don't stay in the bed," entomologist and bedbug expert at the University of Florida Phil Koehler, Ph.D., said. "They can be found just about everywhere in the room, and they can be found in sofas. They can be found even in wall sockets, and even inside wall void. Probably, about 30 percent are going to be found in other areas of the room you wouldn't even think of."

Standard treatment for the removal of bedbugs involves replacing furniture or using insecticides.

Researchers at the University of Florida have pioneered a removal system that costs about $300 to put together and keeps furniture intact.

"The idea is that it only takes about 113 degrees Fahrenheit to kill bedbugs," Dr. Koehler said.

The treatment involves building a Styrofoam box around a cluster of the infected furniture and heating up the area using an oil-based space heater. The air is heated to about 140 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit so the furniture reaches at least 113 degrees.

Dr. Koehler said it usually takes about two and half hours to reach the necessary temperature. The walls of the room are treated with insecticides to ensure all bugs are eliminated.

Source: http://news8austin.com/content/headlines/?ArID=265850&SecID=2

Get Rid of Bed Bugs For Less Than $20

Think you've got bed bugs? For $15, you can build your own bed bug detector with simple materials. You won't even need tools or special skills to assemble it, and it will work as well as professional exterminating equipment.

A "less than $20" solution developed by a Rutgers entomology professor Changlu Wang
which attracts the insects, who climb the fabrics to get at what they think is a live human, and become trapped in the grooves surrounding the inverted bowls.

Rutgers University Researcher Studies Bed Bugs

You couldn't blame Rutgers University researcher Changlu Wang for not wanting to bring his work home with him. Wang, an entomologist, studies the feeding habits of the dreaded blood-sucking bedbug, which has made a comeback of late in the urban Northeast.

Wang is working with researchers from other universities to develop methods to detect, capture and eradicate the pests.

Q. Why has the bedbug made a resurgence?

There are several reasons. None is the deciding factor: increased international travel, a lack of effective pesticides, immigrant workers, insecticide resistance and a lack of detection tools. People don't find them early enough to stem an outbreak. … My interest is in developing some monitoring methods and tools. Visual inspection is often difficult and there are many by the time you see them.

Q. Is New Jersey vulnerable?

It's very common in New Jersey. There are lots of people in multifamily units and we are one of the most densely populated states. We've seen in apartment buildings that they can spread down the hall.

Q. What can people do to prevent an infestation?

Don't accept any used furniture until you're absolutely sure it doesn't have any bedbugs. Also be careful if you are visiting someone's home. Home health-care workers are very concerned; sometimes they can literally see the bedbugs crawl out of someone's sofa. If someone is visiting you, make sure there are no bedbugs in their luggage.

Some of the pesticides that were most effective, such as DDT, were banned for fear of their effect on human health.

Q. What chemical-free solutions are there to repel and get rid of the pests?

You can buy special bedding encasement; they will die because they cannot get out. You can put some barriers under furniture. Some companies also use hot steam machines to apply to furniture to kill the bed bugs. There are heat chambers. Some companies freeze them, but that is relatively expensive. It's difficult. No matter how careful you are, you probably can't get them all.

Q. Do you worry that your work will come home with you?

I've gotten bedbugs several times. I went to apartments with several thousands of them. But they can be easily killed if you quickly wash them and your clothes when you go home.

Maybe in the future we can develop a repellent.

Source: http://www.northjersey.com/news/education/81947572_Rutgers_itching_to_eradicate_pesky_bedbugs.html

Bed Bug Video

The Entomological Society of America (ESA) is featuring a bed bug video on its YouTube channel: