SAN DIEGO—
Everybody has heard the saying "Sleep tight. Don't let the bedbugs bite!" but the creepy crawlers have invaded San Diego and the numbers are growing.The National Pest Management Association reported a 71% increase in bedbug calls in the last few years. The resurgence in infestations led to a National Bed Bug Summit in April of 2009. Bill Henselmeier has been exterminating bugs for over 30 years. He is currently in charge of Harbor Pest Control in San Diego. He said in the past 25 years he received maybe three bedbug calls.
"Now we're getting 3 or 4 a week," said Henselmeier. "One of the reasons why we're seeing resurgence in bedbugs is they have built up a resistance to a lot of the pesticides we use."
The bedbugs can live under mattresses and in the creases of the mattress cord. They are often 5 millimeters long and can be seen by lifting up the mattress and looking underneath. They also stay behind picture frames and behind headboards. They wait for a host to go to sleep and then the creatures come out to feed.
"(They're) like tiny vampires, but that is what they do, they're tiny parasites that suck your blood," said Dr. William Norcross, Prof. of Family Medicine at UCSD School of Medicine.
Dr. Norcross said there is no evidence the bug carry diseases from one person to another but they can be a nuisance. They can bite people hundreds of times causes large whelps that itch. Not everyone reacts to the bites though.
"Some people have lived with bed bugs forever and they don't know it," said Henselmeier." It doesn't react on everybody. Some people swell up in big whelps; some people have no reaction at all."
If you do suspect you have bedbugs call an exterminator for a consultation. Some experts recommend getting rid of the infested mattress and box spring.
