State to state, bed bugs are crawling and phone lines are jumping outta control

Faced with rising numbers of complaints to city information lines and increasingly frustrated landlords, hotel chains and housing authorities, the Environmental Protection Agency organized the first-ever National Bed Bug Summit on April 15, 2009, a three-day conference that drew health experts, housing officials and others together to discuss a resurgence in the critters that invade beds and hotel rooms. According to expert reports, increasing international travel has helped spread bedbugs, and there are few effective pesticides approved for use in eradicating them.

With the most effective pesticides banned, the government is trying to figure out how to respond to what is now being considered the biggest bedbug outbreak since World War II.

Bedbugs live in the crevices and folds of mattresses, sofas and sheets. Then, most often before dawn, they emerge to feed on human blood.

One of the problems with controlling the reddish-brown insects, according to researchers and the pest control industry, is that there are few chemicals on the market approved for use on mattresses and other household items that are effective at controlling bedbug infestations.

"One of our roles would be to learn of new products or safer products. ... What we are concerned about is that if people take things into their own hands and start using pesticides on their mattresses that aren't really registered for that, that's a problem," said Lois Rossi, director of the registration division in the EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs.

Mike Deutsch, staff entomologist with Arrow Exterminating has been finding bed bugs in all sorts of places: inside lamp bases, clock radios, TVs, computer keyboards, between the pages of books, inside electric switches, behind ceiling moldings, and in one case, inside a cell phone. “We’ve never seen anything like this. We certainly know that bed bugs are not restricted to beds and upholstered furniture, but now we’re finding them in places even we never thought possible.” What’s more, Deutsch say, “Expect to see a huge increase in bed bugs after spring break is over this year.”

According to Deutsch, proactive measures to prevent infestation are limited but absolutely necessary. “The infestation problem is only going to get worse in the immediate future,” says Deutsch. “The public needs to accept this fact, get educated and take what preventive measures they can, especially since bed bug populations are extremely difficult to detect when their populations are at a low level within the home. People don’t realize there is a problem until they are getting bitten.”

According to the Harvard School of Public Health, keeping your furniture away from walls and your bedding from coming into contact with the floor may help prevent bedbug infestation. If you think you may have come into contact with bedbugs during your travels, thoroughly wash all of your clothing and scrub out any luggage with a stiff brush, or leave all of your travel belongings in the hot sun for a few hours.

Marc Lame, clinical assistant professor at the Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs and an expert in pest management says, "once bedbugs do show up, the best course is usually to call a pest management professional who is experienced at eradicating bedbugs. Industrial steam, vacuuming and abrasives such as diatomaceous earth are some of the methods used for removing and controlling bedbugs."  (Kirby Anyone?)

"People have to be very persistent about getting rid of them," Lame said. "By far the most important thing is that communities need to educate people so that they are empowered to detect infestations early and become partners in their eradication."