Bed Bugs; the problem and the solution

By Stephen Doggett, Department of Medical Entomology, ICPMR, Westmead Hospital, Westmead NSW 2145.

A survey of Australian professional pest managers in 2006 revealed that bed bug numbers had risen by an unprecedented 4,500% since the start of the new millennium. Unfortunately for the commercial accommodation sector, the vast majority of these infestations had occurred within your industry. The big problem is that bed bugs are expensive and these nuisance insects have probably cost the Australian economy well over A$100million during this period. Not only is bed bug control extremely pricey, but these insects bite with the result that guests often suffer considerable physical and mental trauma. In many parts of the world this had lead to an explosion in litigation, with one motel in the US being sued for $20million after a guest was horrendously attacked. Not surprisingly, the motel’s reputation (and balance sheets) will take years to recover.

Fortunately since the survey above was undertaken, bed bug infestations in ustralia have not continued to increase in the exponential fashion that they did between the years 2000 and 2006. The Global Financial Crisis with the downturn in travel and tourism has probably been one contributing factor for this. Bed bugs are largely spread via luggage, and so the higher the guest turnover, the greater the risk of bed bugs. Despite the levelling out of bed bug numbers there has been a major change in patterns of activity over recent years in that infestations have spread into the wider community. Along with the accommodation industries, Doctors’ waiting rooms, hospitals, the transport system, cinema complexes, socially disadvantaged groups and even wheel chairs have not been immune. In other words, where a head lies or a bum sits, bed bugs can be awaiting! Clearly bed bugs have become a societal problem.

The implications of this for the accommodation industry is that there is now a greater reservoir of potential infestations and as the economy bounces back, we may see rates again rising rapidly…time will tell. However bed bugs are still problematic and infestations continue apace, and it is important to be prepared and know how to deal with bed bugs if they make an unwanted appearance, more of this later.

One positive consequence of resurgence, particularly over the last three years, is that research on bed bugs has flourished, particularly in the area of chemical and non-chemical means of control. This period has also seen many management devices coming onto the marketplace including mattress encasements, and a range of traps, monitors and barriers. But do these devices actually work?

There is no doubt that mattress encasements are an effective bed bug management tool and offer several advantages. For an infested bed, encasements can contain the infestation without the need to discard the mattress and the better quality encasements have an inbuilt membrane which bed bugs are unable to bite through. It is considerably cheaper to purchase an encasement than a new mattress! Encasements have no edge beading and so there are few areas for bed bugs to hide compared to the average mattress and ensemble, which make great bed bug motels. Being white, it is much easier to see bed bugs and their signs on an encasement than a mattress. The two better encasements on the market,

which have been scientifically tested and shown to be effective, are the Protect-A-Bed (www.protectabed.com.au) and the mattress Safe (www.thebedprotector.com.au).

Broadly speaking we can define barriers as devices that aim to prevent bed bugs from climbing onto the bed and biting the sleeping victim, whereas traps (and monitors) aim to detect bed bugs and/or to reduce the overall bed bug population. Barriers work on the assumption that the bed has been cleared of any active infestation and the device will then inhibit access onto the bed for any bugs remaining in the room. One barrier, the ‘Climbup Insect Interceptor’ (CII, www.insect-interceptor.com) has been shown to be very effective. This device has several advantages: it is cheap, just a few dollars each; simple technology with little maintenance; and can act as a monitoring tool. However, the CII is quite obvious and almost screams out, “Yes folk, we have bed bugs!”, and is thus unlikely to be used in the commercial accommodation sector.

Bed bug traps are far more diverse in their nature and operation, but all act as monitoring devices mostly via trapping live bed bugs. Most have some sort of a lure to attract the insects, such as heat, carbon dioxide or various other chemicals. Some traps are disposable and only a few dollars each, while others are well over a thousands dollars and require daily replacement of consumables.

A number of traps have attributes that may limit their use either due to their physical size or perceived occupational health and safety issues. Regarding physical limitations, some traps are over 10cm tall, while most beds with casters in motels have a clearance to the floor of around 6-8cm, which makes placement of the trap problematic. The trap can not be placed in an obvious location within a hotel room while in use, as the guest would not want to stay in a facility where there may be a

perceived risk of bed bugs. The hotel certainly does not want to risk their reputation by announcing that they have an infestation. For some hotels whereby the bed frame consists of sheets of timber nailed together, there is no space available at all underneath. In motels with ensembles or solid bed bases, bed bug traps could only be employed while the room is closed during the treatment process.

A number of bed bug traps utilise mains power and power cords may not been seen as being desirable under the bed for risk of fire, or around the room for the tripping risk. Additionally, a few devices have a canister of compressed carbon dioxide and it may be probable that some hotels would not want a high pressure gas cylinder within their rooms. Such devices may even have insurance implications.

Now to the most important question; do bed bug traps work? It is highly probable that all the devices will trap bed bugs to some extent and are likely to assist in the early detection of these insects. How reliable and effective they are however, is presently unknown as to date no traps have been tested and demonstrated efficacious via independent scientific investigation. Thus presently, it is not possible to recommend any of the bed bug traps currently on the market.

Even though bed bug management is clearly the most rapidly evolving area of research for any pest in the world today, the reality is that there is no magical silver bullet on the horizon for bed bug control. So just what is the best way to rid your property of this nuisance pest?

The reality is that most pest managers consider that bed bugs are the most challenging of all insects to eradicate. The reason for this is that the current generation of bed bugs are highly resistance to most of the insecticides used today. This means that treatments must be very thorough and repeated, often on several occasions with heavy infestations. Multiple control methodologies should also be employed encompassing non-chemical means of control such as steam and vacuuming, as well as the use of insecticides. To ensure that ‘best practice’ is

occurring, the ‘Code of Practice for the Control of Bed Bug Infestations in Australia’ should be consulted. This is a freely available document from www.bedbug.org.au and aims to promote best practice in the eradication of active bed bug infestations and the management of potential infestations. On this site you will also find pest managers who have received specific training in bed bug control.

The Code of Practice is a living document and is updated regularly in order to maintain relevance and to keep up to date with the latest technological innovations in bed bug management. Since its first inception in 2006, there have been six versions; three drafts that have been open for public comment and three final editions. The 3rd Edition is now available for download and has seen many changes, including:

*         The need for Pest Managers to have a Bed Bug Management Plan,
*         The need for those in the accommodation industry to have a Pest Management Policy,
*         Updated information on control via heat,
*         An enhanced section on pest identification,
*         What to look for in a mattress encasement,
*         Information on bed bug traps and barriers,
*         A section on how to choose a Pest Manager for bed bug control,
*         High risk factors in bed bug control,
*         New information on insecticide efficacy and resistance,
*         Bed bugs in rental properties,
*         Control on aircraft
*         Potential insecticides.

In addition, the whole section on bed bug prevention has been totally revised to take in account the four key phases of a bed bug infestation (i.e. the Introduction, Establishment, Growth and eventual Spread of an infestation).

Unfortunately, with the resurgence of bed bugs, the hospitality industry is seen as a potential cash cow by some less scrupulous companies who are keen to make a fast buck. There all sorts of unsubstantiated reports of products claiming to control bed bugs, when often there is little science (or questionable science) to back up the claims. If there is no scientific data produced by an independent body for a product then it will not be endorsed within the Bed Bug Code of Practice. Thus our advice is, if the product is not in the Code, use it at your own risk!

To compliment the recent release of the 3rd Edition of the Bed Bug Code of Practice and to assist the hospitality industry and other accommodation provides in bed bug management, a ‘Bed Bug Management Policy for Accommodation Providers’ has been released. Presently this policy is a draft and can be downloaded from www.bedbug.org.au.

For more information or comments contact:

Westmead Hospital, PO Box 533, Wentworthville NSW 2145, or email: stephen.doggett@swahs.health.nsw.gov.au.

Stephen L. Doggett
Senior Hospital Scientist
Department of Medical Entomology, ICPMR, Westmead Hospital,
WESTMEAD  NSW  2145, Australia.
Ph: +61 2 9845 7265  Fax: +61 2 9893 8659.
Email: Stephen.Doggett@swahs.health.nsw.gov.au or visit www.medent.usyd.edu.au
The Department of Medical Entomology web site. www.arbovirus.health.nsw.gov.au