Emergencies >>>> Insect bite - ticks, mosquitoes, bedbugs

Insect bite - ticks, mosquitoes, bedbugs.

Mite.

A tick bite is dangerous because this insect can be a virus carrier of very dangerous diseases (tick-borne encephalitis and borreliosis - Lyme disease). The probability of infection by a bite is high, since the virus enters the body immediately at the moment the tick proboscis penetrates under the skin. Ticks do not fly, crawl upward and, as a rule, fall on the victim from above from trees, from bushes hurt by walking, or cling to clothes, waiting on blades of grass. For a bite, the tick selects areas with thin skin that is easy to bite through. These are the scalp, neck, ears, collarbones, arms, chest, armpits, lower back, back, groin, popliteal zones, ankles.

The tick bite is not noticeable, since it is painless (the insect's saliva contains an anesthetic).

If, when examining the body, you find dark dots or balls with a size of 2 mm or more, then this is a tick (it looks like a small convex mole). The mite that has collected blood can reach a size of about 10 mm and has a light gray color. If a tick is found, several measures must be taken.

Procedure (pre-medical):

Do not tear the insect off the body, as the head or proboscis will still remain inside, which will complicate its further extraction
If you are near a medical aid point, you should go there immediately, without delaying the removal of the tick.
If it is impossible to carry out the extraction in a specialized institution, it is necessary to get rid of the insect ourselves. To remove ticksinvented special devices (set "AntiMite Module", "Uniclean Tick Twister"). You can also use tweezers (tweezers for plucking eyebrows if you don't have a medical one), or synthetic or silk thread. Grasping (lightly, not clamping strongly) the insect as close to the head as possible, begin to twist its movements to remove its proboscis from the skin (like a screw). It will take three to four turns and then remove it. If you used a thread, then bring it to the proboscis or head as close as possible, put it on the skin, then start twisting the thread, as if you wanted to twist a double thread out of it. After a few turns, spread the ends of the thread to the sides and slightly up. The thread will begin to unwind, grab the proboscis and automatically rotate it, as if twisting it out of the skin. Don't make any sudden movements. Do not throw out the insect, and save for research on the causative agent. To do this, put it in a matchbox or closed jar.
Treat the bite wound with an antiseptic or hydrogen peroxide
For the prevention of tick-borne encephalitis after a bite, it is recommended to take antiviral drugs, primarily iodantipyrine (anaferon for children)

But not all ticks are infected. You can find out for sure whether you have been infected or not by donating blood for tests after three to four weeks. Tick-borne borreliosis in the early stages is treated quickly.

If you have not seen which insect has bitten you, then you can determine by the symptoms of a tick bite: only after a day there will be a feeling of mild pulling pain, so a local inflammatory reaction begins to develop. Severe itching appears and healing is slow.

Mosquitoes.

The mosquito is not a harmless insect. Some types of mosquitoes carry very dangerous pathogens (West Nile encephalitis, equine encephalitis, yellow fever, malaria, Dengue fever). The body's response to a mosquito bite is an allergic reaction. It can proceed in different ways, for example: swelling or slight swelling, itching, burning. But there are times when an allergic reaction is accompanied by more severe symptoms: swelling of the face, shortness of breath, respiratory failure and even an attack of suffocation. You may feel dizzy, increase or, on the contrary, decrease heart rate, decrease pressure. The critical case of an allergic reaction is anaphylactic shock . Therefore, according to the testimony of the victim of the bite, first aid is provided.

Procedure (pre-medical):

With a slight swelling after a bite, apply a cotton swab with alcohol or an alcohol-containing preparation (cologne, alcohol tincture of propolis, calendula, boric alcohol, and others)
Itching and burning can be relieved by applying ice to the bite site, moistening with cold water or menthol, and using anti-inflammatory ointments.
Drink a small dose of an antihistamine.
With the development of anaphylactic shock, the victim is transported to a medical institution, since an oxygen mask may also be needed.

Bedbugs.

Bed bugs are no less dangerous insect than a tick or mosquito. They are carriers of pathogens of such terrible diseases as plague, anthrax, smallpox and tuberculosis.

The favorite habitat of bedbugs is human dwellings. They especially like to sit behind carpets, in the crevices of sofas and beds, behind paintings, under skirting boards and wallpaper, in the corners of furniture. Thus, if you find a bite made by someone unknown when you come from the street, this is not a bug. Bedbug colonies grow very quickly. Bed bugs are nocturnal insects, so during the day they hide in dark secluded places and to see them, you will have to look carefully.

The bug bite is painless, as it injects a substance with an analgesic effect simultaneously with the bite. Outwardly, the site of a bug bite resembles a mosquito bite, pimple or allergic rash. Bites are located anywhere, especially in areas with thin skin and are usually arranged in a row of several bites in a row.

The reaction to bug bites is different for everyone, but usually it is itching, burning, swelling. To improve your well-being, you can apply a cotton swab with alcohol or an alcohol-containing substance to the bite site, cool it with ice or cold water, drink an antihistamine tablet.

If you got out of bed in the morning and noticed any rash of unknown origin, examine the place of sleep and the above-mentioned places on the walls, furniture. If you find this insect at home, you need to start a fight with it.

You can entrust the disinfection to specialists or do it yourself. To do this, you will need goggles, a respirator, gloves, a protective suit (preferably) and the disinfectant itself (preferably an aerosol or liquid). We give an example of several such funds: "Karbozol", "Dichlorvos", "Difocarb", "Karbofos", "GET" and other means, which include karbofos or chlorpyrifos. Absolutely all walls, floors and furniture (especially cracks) will have to be processed in one day, since if you leave at least one untreated area, the bugs will calmly move to it and continue to exist. After treatment, it is necessary to ventilate the room for at least a day, since the vapor of the disinfectant can be quite unpleasant for inhalation. Moving to another home for a couple of days would be ideal.