Bed bugs become more lethal now with MRSA bacteria

Bed Bugs With MRSA Discovered

Bed bugs are a growing problem in many cities and even small communities in the United States and Europe. The small critters can be found in hotel beds, clothes, airline seats and home furnishings. When bitten, people can develop rashes and allergic symptoms but seldom cause deaths.

Now, Canadian researchers have discovered that bed bugs may potentially go beyond pesky annoyances to lethal killers because some of them carry MRSA and VRE antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

The scientists said that bed bugs have not been known to carry and spread infection. But their study of patients living in the Downtown Eastside area of Vancouver  with both bed bug infestation and high rates of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infection suggests otherwise.

The findings stated in the Emerging Infectious Diseases report of the CDC are important because there has been a spike in bed bugs in popular tourist destinations such as New York and Paris recently.

But the report was also quick to clarify that there have been no known transmission to humans.

"To our knowledge, no conclusive evidence has demonstrated disease transmission by bed bugs," the researchers wrote. "Bed bug carriage of MRSA, and the portal of entry provided through feeding, suggests a plausible potential mechanism for passive transmission of bacteria during a blood meal."

MRSA infections are often seen in hospitals and can be fatal if the bacteria enters through a wound and into the blood stream. Meanwhile VRE is usually harmless while living in the gut and skin but dangerous when a person's immune system is compromised.

Experts blame increasing global travel and resistance to pesticides for the recent resurgence of bed bugs.

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Posted by George Daniels on Wednesday May 11 2011, 11:42 PM EST. Ref: AFP. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, Health. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0