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As KBTX3 reported, cases of kissing bugs have increased, creating serious risks for humans and dogs. Kissing bugs spread diseases through their feces and also by sucking blood, just like mosquitoes.
- Overview
- What are kissing bugs?
- What do kissing bugs look like?
- What are the symptoms of a kissing bug bite?
- Are there serious risks associated with a kissing bug bite?
- What is Chagas disease?
- How are kissing bug bites treated?
- When should you see a doctor about kissing bug bites?
- How can you prevent kissing bug bites?
- What’s the takeaway?
Kissing bugs tend to bite people on the face and near the mouth. They carry a parasite called Trypanosoma cruzi, which can develop into an infection.
Triatomine bugs, or triatomines, are native to Mexico, Central America, South America, and parts of the United States. They’re nicknamed “kissing bugs” for a rather unpleasant reason — they tend to bite people on the face and near the mouth. They can bite people on other parts of the body, too.
Kissing bugs carry a parasite called Trypanosoma cruzi. They pick up this parasite by feeding on a person or an animal with a T. cruzi infection. The parasite then lives in the kissing bug’s intestines and feces.
If feces containing the T. cruzi parasite get inside your body, you’ll develop an infection known as Chagas disease.
Kissing bugs are nocturnal, which means they come out at night to feed. Kissing bugs usually bite people when they’re sleeping. The bites don’t hurt, and you may not even know you’ve been bitten.
Kissing bugs resemble other bugs naturally present in the United States, such as the Western corsair, leaf-footed bug, and wheel bug.
There are 11 species of kissing bugs found in the United States. Key aspects of a kissing bug’s appearance include:
•a cone-shaped head
•a length of .5 to 1 inch
•a long, oval-shaped body with antennae
•a light brown to black body
Most people don’t have a skin reaction when a kissing bug bites them. The bite isn’t distinctive, either. It looks like any other bug bite, except there’s usually a cluster of bites together in one spot.
People who are sensitive to the kissing bug’s saliva may experience a reaction to the bite. This is usually only mild itching, redness, and swelling. Occasionally, a kissing bug bite causes a severe localized allergic reaction.
If you have a T. cruzi infection, a small hard area may form at the bite site 1 or 2 weeks after you’re bitten. This is called a chagoma. Chagomas look red and swollen.
If the T. cruzi parasite enters your body through the conjunctiva, it may cause swelling of the upper and lower eyelid. This response is known as Romaña’s sign.
In rare cases, a person who’s allergic to the kissing bug’s saliva can have a severe allergic reaction after being bitten. This reaction is known as anaphylaxis.
Anaphylaxis is a life threatening allergic reaction that comes on suddenly. Anaphylaxis can lower your blood pressure to dangerous levels and make it hard to breathe.
Chagas disease is another rare complication of a kissing bug bite. Not all people bitten by kissing bugs get Chagas disease. You only get the disease if infected feces from the parasite get into your body.
After a kissing bug bites you and feeds on your blood, the bug defecates. An infection can occur if the feces enter the body through your mouth, your nose, your eyes, or an opening in your skin. The feces can also enter your skin if you scratch or touch the bite and accidentally transfer the feces.
The first few weeks of the infection are what’s known as the acute phase. Most people have no symptoms or only very mild flu-like symptoms. These can include fever, body aches, a rash, and swollen glands. The symptoms are a reaction to the high number of parasites circulating in the blood.
Symptoms improve — even without treatment — as the number of parasites in the bloodstream decreases. This is the chronic phase. T. cruzi is still in the body, but most people don’t have symptoms.
However, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an estimated 20–30 percent of people with Chagas disease experience symptoms years or decades later. The symptoms are severe and can be life threatening. They can include:
•irregular heart rhythms that can lead to sudden death
Since kissing bug bites don’t cause any pain, most people won’t need treatment.
If you experience a mild skin reaction, an anti-itch cream, such as calamine lotion, can help.
A severe localized allergic reaction should be evaluated by a healthcare provider, who may treat it with antihistamines and corticosteroids.
If you go into anaphylaxis and have already been prescribed epinephrine, use your autoinjector to administer it (or have someone else administer it) until medical help is available.
See a doctor if you:
•live in Mexico, Central America, South America, or the lower half of the United States, and have clustered insect bites on your body, especially your face
•have seen kissing bugs in your home
•are experiencing symptoms that could be caused by Chagas disease
During the day, kissing bugs usually live in mud, straw, and adobe. These materials are often used to build homes in the endemic areas of Mexico, Central America, and South America.
If you visit these areas, try to avoid sleeping in structures made of these materials. If you do sleep in them, take the following precautions:
•surround your bed with insecticide-coated netting
•spray insecticides to kill the bugs in the area
•apply bug spray to your skin regularly
If you live in a structure made of mud, straw, or adobe, you should also take the precautions above. In addition, get tested to see if you’ve already contracted the T. cruzi infection.
Kissing bugs don’t always cause Chagas disease, but if you think you’ve been bitten, see a doctor. Early treatment is critical to preventing Chagas disease from reaching the chronic stage.
Keeping your home bug-free and notifying a doctor if you have bites or symptoms of Chagas disease can help you stay healthy.
Dec 27, 2023 · Kissing bug: Blood-sucking insects from South America that cause heart disease and other diseases and bite you while you are asleep. Learn how to detect them and how to get rid of them. Skip to...
Nov 12, 2020 · The cause of Chagas disease is the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, which is spread from an insect known as the triatomine bug, or "kissing bug." These insects can become infected by this parasite when they swallow blood from an animal that is infected with the parasite.
Dec 4, 2023 · Kissing bugs can spread Chagas disease, and you might not even know you were bitten. Here's what kissing bugs look like and how to get rid of them.
- Tiffany Acosta
- Ultimate Arizona Reporter
Aug 14, 2023 · Chagas disease is endemic in Latin America, where an estimated 8 million people are infected but most don’t know it, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About the size of a penny, “kissing bugs” — so named because they bite people on the face — feast on human blood.
People also ask
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Dec 7, 2019 · “Kissing bug” is the common name for a species of bug called triatomines. The bugs get their common name because they tend to leave bite marks on the face. The main risk associated with kissing...
