Flea bites - symptoms, treatment, effective home remedies

Bites of fleas and insects

A rash, especially in the area of ​​the extremities, does not necessarily have to be an allergic reaction or a skin disease. Especially in the summer and in households where live pets such as dogs or cats, fleas can be behind such skin irritation. The flea bites are not completely harmless, because the parasites are able to transmit a number of dangerous infectious diseases. In addition, the bites affected cause a very annoying itching and can sometimes become very inflamed when patients are itching caused to scratch the bite marks. It is therefore necessary to take special care in handling flea bites. All important information can be found in this article.

contents

• Bites of fleas and insects
• definition
• flea species
• Fleas - lifestyle and transmission
• symptoms
• Diagnosis of flea bites
• therapy
• Treatment of the environment
• Medical therapy
• Home remedies and medicinal treatment
• complications

definition

Flea bites are relatively easy to distinguish from other insect bites and most rashes. The animals are known to proceed very systematically with their bites or stings and even make trial bites, which is why corresponding bites are usually lined up next to each other. Particularly common are triad of bites, with a single flea bite about one centimeter in diameter and appears slightly raised on the skin. Also common is a bright red color of the bite sites. In addition, in the middle of the bite, a punctate bleeding often arises, which results from the puncture site of the responsible flea. Sometimes flea attacks are so intense that an affected host is literally covered in bite marks. As a rule, however, the wounds are especially concentrated on the extremities, ie arms and legs as well as their joint sections in the area of ​​the knees and elbows. In principle, but also the torso and underarms and hips may be the target of the flea attacks.

Since fleas are only one to four millimeters in size, they are difficult to detect. (Image: TANABOON /Fotolia.com)

flea species

Fleas (Siphonaptera) are not a separate species of insects but rather a whole order of insects with many different genera. In Central Europe alone fleas exist in about 80 different species. In this regard, not only the so-called human flea (Pulex irritans) can become dangerous to humans. Also, flea species that usually settle on pets, e.g. the dog flea (Ctenocephalides canis), also named after its main host, or the cat flea (Ctenocephalides felis), can not be ruled out as originators of flea bites in humans. Even the rat flea (Yenopsylla cheopis) known as the plague flea does not stop at human hosts.

Other known species, at least some of which are occasionally also human, are:

• Badger flea (Chaetopsylla trichosa)
• Squirrel flea (Monopsyllus sciurorum)
• Fox flea (Chaetopsylla globiceps)
• Hedgehog flea (Archaeopsylla erinacei)
• Rabbit flea (Spilopysllus cuniculi)
• Mole flea (Hystrichopsylla talpae)
• Mouse flea (Leptinus testaceus)
• Sand flea (Tunga penetrans)
• Shrew (Palaeopsylla soricis)
• Pigeon flea (Ceratophyllus columbae)
• Bird flies (Ceratophyllus gallinae)

It is common to the parasites that they are just one to four millimeters in size, which is why they are difficult to see with the naked eye. In addition, they usually do their biting at night, when their victims sleep soundly. Unnoticed, they crawl under the clothing, which explains why flea bites are mostly found on covered body parts. Your numbing saliva secretion also helps fleas remain unnoticed for the time being. It is secreted via the mouthparts of the fleas, more precisely, their stinging and sucking proboscis into the bite wound and provides besides a local anesthesia also for a delayed blood coagulation, so that the insects can drink unhindered of their host.

The fur flea, which infests dogs, also feeds on humans. (Image: nateejindakum / Fotolia.com)

Only after the actual bite it comes after a few minutes to the formation of wheals, which begin to itch increasingly. Reason for this are the already mentioned saliva secretions. For human skin, these secretions are foreign substances that cause immediate irritant reactions. Both the redness and the annoying itching around the bite wound can last for several days to weeks without treatment. To make matters worse, that the parasite saliva can also cause various pathogens, including

• Francisella tularensis (causative agent of tularemia),
• Rickettsia mooseri (causative agent of endemic typhus fever),
• streptococci,
• staphylococci,
• and Yersinia (the pest irritant Yiersinia pestis is transmitted by the plague or rat flea).

Danger: Should it come to the contaminated saliva of a flea to wound contamination, threatened next to redness and itching also severe wound infections and even body-wide infections. Also, despite sometimes unbearable itching, it is strongly recommended not to scratch the bite marks. The salivary secretions, as well as infectious germs, could spread further.

Fleas - lifestyle and transmission

Fleas are wingless insects that prefer to live in mild climates at 10 ° C or more. They feed on the blood of warm-blooded creatures, with well over 94 percent of their hosts being supplied by mammals. This means that farm animals, rodents, pets and suckling wild animals are among their preferred food sources. Unlike many other parasites, they are not necessarily bound to specific host animals. Rather, the location of their nests determines the selection of the host. And this is exactly where the great dangers for people are opening up. As a nesting place, the fleas - in addition to animal fur and dense body hair - also have household upholstery and textiles such as for example

• Pet Cup,
• Cover,
• clothes,
• pillow,
• upholstered furniture,
• and carpets.

It is well known that fleas can jump very far, which is why they easily overcome even larger distances between nest and host. Finding it here is often an act of impossibility. Often, the little tormentors are so fast on the road or it has lost only a single representative, so it is almost impossible to discover the fleas.

Useful information: The quick jump, which replaces the non-existent insect wings in fleas, is considered to be the fastest movement in the animal kingdom. It comes from the enormous hub that fleas produce with their hind legs. The lifting process is an interaction of muscle contractions and elastic protein pads (so-called Resilin pads) located in the hind legs of the fleas, which stretch like a bow before each jump and allow the insect to fly far into the air. The lifting process when jumping as a wing replacement is also responsible for the scientific name of the fleas "Siphonaptera", which is composed of the ancient Greek words siphon for "Heber" and ápteros for "unglügel".

It is necessary to distinguish between two groups with regard to the habits of fleas.

Nestfflöhe

Basically, nest fleas act in the immediate vicinity of their nesting and sleeping place. They prefer a dark and dry environment, which is why people like to populate their homes with inconspicuous corners and infrequently used upholstery and textiles that are rarely irritated by shocks. From their nesting hideaway, the photophobic parasites come exclusively at night, and only to drink from their hosts. The favorite victims of the nest fleas are therefore logically sleeping warm-blooded animals. In addition, since they are reluctant to change their location, entire colonies can form from their sites, which significantly increases the risk of heavy infestation in the home. The most important representative of the nest fleas is the human flea. He has made it a habit to nest directly in or at least on the bed of his human sacrifice, such as on the mattress bottom, in sheets or, in the case of cots, also in stuffed animals.

Flohnester are found in upholstered furniture and carpets, but also in stuffed animals. (Image: Patrick-Daxenbichler / foltolia.com)

Fur fleas

Fur fleas show a clear contrast in everyday behavior. Their name is due to the fact that they prefer to live on animal fur and animal fur. They are hardly affected by the light and vibrations, which is why they are only too happy to be carried around by their livestock farmers and sometimes go on longer hikes. Usually, fur fleas really only select animals as potential hosts. If the offer of hosts here are too low, they make an exception and attach themselves to the people.

A classic representative of the group of fur fleas is the rat flea. This was instrumental in the epidemic spread of the plague in the Middle Ages. The disease was originally more common among rats and other rodents. However, fleas were also infected with the plague due to the absorption of the pest irritants with the rat blood. Probably due to lack of hygiene, the rat fleas arrived in the Middle Ages also increasingly in human habitats. The epidemic spread of the plague can be explained by the habit of the fleas, the bite in human hosts and larger amounts of plague bacteria from their forestomach to thaw up and expel in the bite wound. In this way, the Pesterreger entered the bloodstream of those affected and the plague infection took its course.

symptoms

The most obvious signs of flea bites are the reddened, slightly raised bite marks on the skin. They are associated with a strong and annoying itching and usually run to several bite sites lined up or in a triangle. The resulting bite pattern is also known in medicine as flea street and indicates in the visual diagnosis on a certain systematic approach of the parasite. If an allergy to the salivary secretion of the fleas is present or the bite is accompanied by an infection, the bites may also appear as whitish and very painful poplars. The flea bites are often localized on the arms and legs as well as on the inside and outside of the joints, such as the ankle, elbow, armpit, armpits or the popliteal fossa. But other body parts such as the back or the abdomen may be affected. Overall, the following symptoms must be expected for flea bites:

• Redness of the bite wound,
• Bissgrüppchen in rows or in the triangle (Flohstraße,)
• strong itching,
• Whitefinging of the white poplar (in case of flea allergy),
• and pain in the area of ​​the wound

Itching and redness, as well as the typical pattern (flea road) give evidence of a flea infestation. (Image: Phawat / Fotolia.com)

Danger! Pain in combination with burning redness indicates an inflammation of the bite wounds in flea bites. An infection process is very likely here, so a doctor's visit is strongly advised. In general, it makes sense to have flea bites examined in order to rule out infections by careful examination.

Diagnosis of flea bites

Privately, the safest way to confirm a flea infestation is first of all to check for existing symptoms. A suspicious rash that itches strongly and has the typical bite character of a flea road, confirms in this regard, an initial suspicion. After that, of course, finding live fleas or their remains is the main confirmation of the presence of fleas in the household.

Since the parasites are very small in themselves, it is usually very difficult to locate them directly. However, fleas leave feces traces, which are all too easily confused with black dust grains. However, since the black, millimeter-sized globules consist mainly of digested blood, turn reddish on contact with water. The same applies to the grinding of the flea faeces, which also brings to light small traces of blood. Especially the latter effect, sufferers are happy to take advantage of a suspected flea infestation when it comes to tracking down the pests. For example, you can comb the fur of household pets with a special flea comb and collect the black feces crumbs. If you rub the crumbs afterwards on a white cloth, this turns rusty brown. Similarly, one can proceed with textiles that are suspected of being infected by fleas. Cushions, blankets or clothing are simply shaken out for this purpose, the collected dirt is placed on a damp cloth and rubbed.

If an initial suspicion is confirmed, it is advisable to go with the flea bites to the doctor. Not only that it is important to heal the bites quickly with appropriate preparations to prevent itching scratching and thus inflammation of the wound. It should also examine the patient's blood for any infectious agents. In addition to the diagnostic examination so also blood tests are important. In addition, if the bite sites of patients have already been scratched, it is useful to take a swab to see if the wound has been contaminated by germs.

therapy

The therapy for flea bites consists on the one hand of supplying the bite wound with special preparations. On the other hand, of course, the affected living room and the pets must be freed from the fleas. In order to make sure that the flea infestation was really completely fought, extreme care is necessary. For this reason, below are a few useful tips and information on comprehensive treatment.

Treatment of the environment

Even before the treatment of the flea bites, the treatment of the environment affected by the fleas is in the first place. As long as this has not happened, it will come to more and more flea bites. It is important to know that fleas only become active once a day in order to elicit a blood meal from their host. Otherwise, they prefer to retreat to the immediate vicinity of their hosts and there care for offspring. Even at peak times, when it comes to nesting fleas, it is assumed that only a maximum of ten percent of the actual population of fleas live on one landlord, while the remaining 90 percent roam the nearby area. In addition, the fleas responsible for the bites may also be fur fleas that only get by the way on the human body. It is therefore not only self-sufficient, but also domestic pets and any possible nesting sites for fleas in their own household to undergo comprehensive flea control.

In the case of pets, flea collars or spot-on preparations are an option in this context. The latter are special medicines for applying to the animal's coat, which kill the parasites safely and can also be used for prevention during the high season for fleas (spring and summer).

Important: The sleeping places of the animals should also be thoroughly cleaned when flea infestation, if not completely replaced!

Flea sprays like Ardap are helpful in treating the environment. If you want to do without aggressive chemicals, you can try it with organic flea powder. In any case, parasite control should consider the life cycle of fleas. Because with a single treatment, the work is unfortunately not done, because the eggs of the fleas can often survive initial measures. For this reason, it is important to repeat the appropriate measures according to the product instructions several times, depending on the preparation used. In very bad infestation, it can take up to three months, until all fleas, larvae and eggs have been completely eliminated.

If the Flohnest can not be identified, an exterminator should be called (Image: Karin - & - Uwe-Annas / fotolia.com)

A few more rules of thumb for the control are:

• Quarantine: Badly cleanable objects should be quarantined after treatment. To do this, you pack the objects in large garbage bags and keep them air-tight in a sealed-off place until the end of their lifecycle. After the quarantine, it makes sense to treat the object again with appropriate anti-flea agents to make sure that all parasites were caught completely.
• Comprehensive basic cleaning: In addition to textiles such as upholstery, animal baskets or clothing, carpets, stuffed animals, curtains and towels should also be thoroughly cleaned as a precaution. The floor should be wiped hot after each cleaning step to prevent falling parasites from escaping. The car should also be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected.
• Control by experts: Anyone who is unsure whether he has really caught all the fleas in the treatment, the help of an exterminator is advised. Thanks to his special training, he can not only read the tracks of the animals in a targeted manner, but also carry out a professional basic cleaning in an emergency. In case of doubt, pets should be re-examined by a veterinarian after treatment.

Medical therapy

Flea bites can be itchy, which often leads to scarring in the course of healing, because sufferers scratch constantly at the bite marks. This is especially true for young patients who usually do not know how to help. However, the itching can be well mitigated by soothing ointments, for example Fenistil gel, cooling gel or cooled zinc ointment.

Occasionally, flea bites can lead to allergic reactions or severe local inflammation. It is absolutely necessary to seek the advice of a doctor who prescribes cortisone-containing ointments and tablets or antihistamines, depending on their severity. If serious infectious agents have been discovered that have gotten under the skin or even into the patient's blood with the bite, antibiotic therapy is inevitable.

Home remedies and medicinal treatment

Especially the strong itching can also be treated well with home remedies for flea bites. Chilled vinegar infusions or chilled mint tea placed directly on the affected areas of the skin to create relief quickly. Sometimes it helps to hang up a cooling pad.

The aloe vera plant is also often used for itching rashes of any kind. On the one hand it relieves the itching, on the other hand, it also cares for the irritated skin and thus contributes to healing. For this purpose, unperfumed gels can be used or you directly cut the leaf of an aloe vera plant longitudinally and put it on the affected skin area. After about 15 minutes, the aloe vera treatment should be temporarily interrupted, but it can be used as often as needed throughout the day.

Aloe vera can relieve the itching of flea bites. (Image: g215 / fotolia.com)

Another helper in the field of medicinal plants is the tea tree in flea bites. Its oils relieve the itching and, by their antibiotic effect, they also prevent wound inflammation. However, the oil should not be applied undiluted to the skin area, since the highly concentrated ingredients otherwise cause rather irritating conditions on damaged skin than to heal. Diluted with a little water or as an addition to a healing ointment (for example, panthenol), the tea tree oil can perform true miracles.

complications

Flea bites are complicating on the one hand due to their infection and scarring potential. If the fleas have previously taken infectious agents elsewhere, a flea bite can quickly become a serious affair that can sometimes even take epidemic proportions. A plague transmitted to rats by fleas is - with a strong association with the Middle Ages - often a problem in the recent past, albeit more so in developing countries. Staphylococcal and streptococcal infections, on the other hand, have to be protected by infected fleas.

As mentioned above, scars are most likely to develop when the bite marks are scratched bloody due to the intense itching. This happens only too easily, because the urge to scratch itching is very large. It is therefore very important to resist the urge and to resort to annoying Allzeitjucken prefer to cool wounds. In addition, the scratching can also get dirt particles and germs into the wound, which increases the risk of infection and infection, even if the fleas responsible for the bite have carried around no infectious agents.

Another complication arises from the difficulty of really getting a household flea-free. The small size of the parasites allows them to hide very well, which can lead to a renewed outbreak of the plague even after supposedly successful control. In addition, survivors often live on after surviving Flohinvasion with the fear of being confronted again with this problem, which can develop in everyday life to a not to be underestimated, mental stress.

Speaking of psyche: Many people who struggle with flea plague suffer greatly from the circumstance. For two reasons. For one, they are ashamed of the parasite infestation, as well as the obvious traces of parasites on their bodies, which can sometimes lower the self-esteem and cause inferiority complexes. Also, other people who know about the infestation, often avoid dealing with those affected. Especially for children who are therefore marginalized or teased by peers in kindergarten or at school, for example .
"Social ostracism" is a very heavy burden. In addition, cases of parasitic infestation often involve the risk that those affected develop a certain obsession with household and body cleansing. Solid phobias, for example against insects or pets, which could potentially be loaded with fleas, can not be ruled out in this context. (Ma)
Specialist supervision: Barbara Schindewolf-Lensch (doctor)