Local bug carries the “kiss of death”
Levi Hill/News-Sun
Texas-sized mosquitoes, Arkansas razor-backed chiggers and the very worst no-tell motel bed bugs have nothing on the potentially deadly cone-nosed “kissing bugs” that infest Lea County.
The bug, which can grow up to an inch in size, is a bloodsucker classified as a Triatomine bug and can be carriers of the Trypanosoma cruzi parasite, which, in humans can cause severe allergic reactions and, long term, even death.
The bug seems to have become more prevalent in Lea County in recent years and if the potential for an infection that can cause heart disease isn’t bad enough, they carry a painful bite that makes a person seriously consider amputation of the “kissed” tissue.
My family started noticing “kissing bugs” about a decade ago around our home in southern Lea County when we started waking up with huge, red welts that alternately itched and ached excruciatingly.
The bug, if hiding in your home, often returns night after night to feast on the same victim and has a tendency to attack the same area of the body over and over when given the opportunity.
A person might awaken to find themselves bitten four or five times in the same area in one night and it takes days or even weeks for the welts and pain to subside.
Dr. Jane Pierce, entomologist for New Mexico State University, studied kissing bugs heavily from 2012-2015 and she said the insect has always been in New Mexico but its population numbers may be on the rise as well as the number of bugs infected with the potentially deadly parasite.
“There was a man and woman who did work on kissing bugs for 40 years in New Mexico. They were finding there was only a 3-5 percent infection rate,” Pierce said of the prevalence of the parasite found in bugs in the United States. “But now we are seeing much higher. It is not because there are insects moving up from anywhere else like Mexico. They have been here all along.”
There are 138 species of the insect but the most common in the Lea County area is the genus T. rubida and Pierce said early results of ongoing studies show the parasite infection rate in kissing bugs could be as high as 50 percent.
Chagas disease — named after the Brazilian physician Carlos Chagas who discovered the disease in 1909 — is estimated to infect as many as 8 million people in Mexico, Central America and South America.
Pierce said the parasite’s disease manifests in two stages — the initial, or acute, phase that can manifest with symptoms similar to the flu, and then chronic phase, which occurs decades later and can cause heart disease-related death.
“The acute phase is like the flu, so a lot of people don’t even realize they’ve been infected,” Pierce said. “Then 25 to 40 years later you suddenly get heart disease. I suspect the number of heart disease cases caused by Chagas is much higher than reported because no one thinks to look for Chagas when someone dies of heart disease.”
Globally, an estimated 21,000-45,000 people die each year from chronic Chagas disease.
The disease is transmitted to people from the parasite that lives inside the kissing bug through the bug’s feces.
The bug may poop on or near a person while it is feeding on them and the parasite is transmitted to the person when the feces enters the bloodstream, either from the person scratching at the bite or through a mucous membrane (for example the eye or mouth) when the person touches their face.
People can also become infected through congenital transmission (from a pregnant woman to her unborn child), from blood transfusions or organ transplants, or from consumption of uncooked foods contaminated with feces.
Approximately 20-30 percent of those infected develop long-term, chronic symptoms which can manifest as cardiac complications including, an enlarged heart, heart failure, altered heart rate or rhythm and cardiac arrest, or as gastrointestinal complications such as an enlarged esophagus or colon.
There is no cure for chronic Chagas, but there are potentially life-saving therapies that can kill the parasite and treatments to manage symptoms.
Chagas is diagnosed by blood tests.
Pierce said it is more common for dogs to become infected with Chagas because they have a tendency to eat the bug.
She said transmission of the parasite to humans is much lower despite there likely being higher than once thought numbers of the insect carrying the parasite.
“I do not think it is a huge risk,” she said. “It is a very lousy vector. It is in the fecal matter. You have to get the fecal matter into the blood stream. It is not like a mosquito feeding on you and injecting a virus into you. I don’t think the risk is zero but I think the bigger risk is people with severe allergic reactions.”
The Centers for Disease Control warns that even if not infected with Chagas, the bite of the kissing bug can, in rare instances, cause anaphylactic shock (severe allergic reaction) in some people.
Pierce said anyone who suddenly finds themselves with a suspected bite and becoming short of breath or feeling unwell should seek medical attention.
She said avoiding the bug is key to preventing infection.
The bugs are commonly be found in rodent nests or animal burrows and outdoor dog kennels and chicken coops.
From personal experience, I’ve found they often migrate into the home on indoor/outdoor pets and are most active in the evening and nighttime hours.
The CDC states synthetic pyrethroid bug sprays have been used successfully in Latin America to get rid of house infestations. Although similar chemicals are available in the United States, none have been specifically approved for use against kissing bugs.
Pyrethroid common names almost always end in either -thrin or -ate. Examples include allethrin, resmethrin, permethrin, cyfluthrin or esfenvalerate.
It’s easy to kill the pests by smashing or stomping them. However, the CDC recommends not doing so, but instead placing a container on top of the bug, slide the bug inside, and fill it with rubbing alcohol or, if not available, freeze the bug in the container. Then, you may take it to your local extension service, health department or a university laboratory for identification.
Pierce said captured specimens in Lea County can be taken to the Lea County Extension Office in Lovington and left for her. She said her office is continuing to attempt to collect data on the percent of the bugs in the state infected with the deadly parasite.
I have found no ointment or treatment that lessens the pain caused by the bite of these bugs. However, dosing oneself daily with a liberal serving of garlic works on kissing bugs much like it does on the opposite sex — it drives them away.
Daily doses of garlic tablets taken for about two weeks have proven effective at keeping the bugs at bay and you can also dose pets with garlic to protect them.
Pierce said one way to protect outdoor pets is to not keep lights on around them at night, as the bugs are drawn to the light and then feed on the animals.
She said for protection against the bug, some studies are showing coconut oil also works as a deterrent and she said a coconut oil lotion applied before bedtime may keep the bugs at bay if you discover them in your home.
The CDC recommends any surfaces that have come into contact with the bug should be cleaned with a solution made of one part bleach to nine parts water, or seven parts ethanol to three parts water to kill the parasites in any feces that may be present.
