Trying to take a bite out of bedbugs

[okarol]

Trying to take a bite out of bedbugs
Businesses discover pests aren't limiting their invasions to private homes
10:12 PM, Jan. 30, 2011  | 

Written by
Shari Rudavsky

Bedbugs used to be found mostly in, yes, beds and homes.

But as the little critters have enjoyed a resurgence, they've become restless. Since the fall, there have been increasing reports about them in the workplace, including schools, office buildings and dialysis clinics.

"It's getting worse as time goes on," said Jerry Eddington, a technician with Circle City Pest Control Co. "Within the last year, we're finding them in workplaces, and that's something that we never heard of before."

Circle City has exterminated bedbugs in restaurants, an insurance company, churches and office buildings.

A study conducted in July by the National Pest Management Association and the University of Kentucky found almost 20 percent of exterminators had been to workplaces for bedbugs. Three years ago, that figure was 1 percent.

"Bedbugs are hitchhikers, so they're going to go wherever humans are going to go," said Marc Lame, a clinical professor at Indiana University's School of Public and Environmental Affairs. "It's a symptom of a growing epidemic of bedbugs . . . that it eventually goes to the workplace."

Businesses have contacted Larry Lobdell, an environmental health specialist with the Marion County Health Department, asking whether they can turn away customers with bedbugs.

A dialysis clinic tried to kick out a patient with bedbugs. A few days later, Lobdell heard from the patient, who wondered whether that was legal.

The patient rid his house of the bugs, and the problem was resolved, Lobdell said.

But a solution has not been as easy at a convenience store, where the manager asked Lobdell whether he had to allow customers with bedbugs to enter the store.

"We're still in the process of trying to think how you come up with some ordinance to grab hold of this," Lobdell said. "Right now, we have a lot of finger-pointing. . . . It's cloudy."

No Marion County ordinance covers bedbugs, although there are laws about cockroaches and fleas, Lobdell said. Passing an ordinance would allow the county to mandate that an infested home be cleaned.

The good news for those who see bedbugs in the workplace is that they're not likely to be looking for a meal, experts say.

Bedbugs feed on people when they're still, said Lame, who also is an entomologist in Bloomington. The bites look like tiny needle marks and cause itching in about a third of those attacked.

The bugs, which are about the size of an apple seed, can survive up to a year without feeding. But they can't multiply without a meal, Lame said.

Bedbugs have shown up in at least four Indianapolis Public Schools buildings since fall, said Kim Hooper, a district spokeswoman.

Area hospitals have also had their too-close encounters. A few months ago, bedbugs accompanied a patient to the Primary Care Center at Wishard Health Services, an outpatient clinic next to Wishard Memorial Hospital.

The area was closed for 72 hours to clean the walls and floors. The furniture was thrown out, said Wishard spokesman Todd Harper.

After Bloomington Hospital staff found a bedbug in a patient's room in November, the hospital thoroughly cleaned that room and another where the patient had stayed.

A few weeks later, specially trained dogs came through the hospital to sniff out any remaining bedbugs, said hospital spokeswoman Amanda Roach.

"It's a national issue and it's happening everywhere, so we're trying to be as proactive as possible," she said.

Call Star reporter Shari Rudavsky at (317) 444-6354.

http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php