Bedbugs a Growing Problem in DuPage County

Every week, the DuPage County Health Department receives about six inquiries related to bedbugs. And for every call to officials in the county's three health department offices, there may be a dozen people affected.

Such statistics are evidence of the problems bedbugs are causing locally, according to Kevin Dixon, the director of the Environmental Health Unit at the DuPage County Health Department.

Dixon said calls come in from apartments, condos, motels, hotels and even some businesses.

"That is why we know we have problems," Dixon said. "It's a national issue."

When people call and talk to officials, they are provided with advice on what to do, depending on the nature of the problem, Dixon said. It's one thing if a person picked up the bugs in their luggage while on vacation. It's another if there's an infestation in an apartment.

People are not required to call the health department, Dixon said. Those affected might choose to call a pest control company at the outset of the problem.

Tom Dobrinska, training director and staff entomologist with Anderson Pest Solutions, said that compared with five years ago, there is an increase of roughly 400 to 500 percent in reported incidents of bedbug infestations. 

The majority of the cases treated tend to occur in low-income housing, he said. The stigma associated with the bugs is "unfortunate," Dobrinska said, adding that infestations are not related to uncleanliness. Often it comes down to a cost issue, because trying to eliminate the bugs can be very labor intensive and expensive.

"Oftentimes the people who have them aren't the ones complaining about it," Dobrinska said. "They may be afraid they are going to be evicted or may not realize they have them because they don't react to the bites."

But landlords are legally required to have infestations treated, he said, and tenants can't be evicted because they've had an infestation. 

Bedbugs also are being found in higher-end hotels, in part because of the number of travelers that are unknowingly transporting them, he said.

Since he travels frequently, Dobrinska has a system of checking out a room. 

"I do a cursory look at my bedding all the time," he said. "I have my flashlight and I am looking around the headboard, looking around the seam of the mattress, looking at the box spring and bed frame."

Dobrinska said he never puts his suitcase on the bed, usually leaving it on top of the dresser. He knows some people who won't transfer their clothes from the suitcase into a hotel's dresser drawers, opting to live out of the suitcase, so to speak.

The bugs feed on people and engorge themselves on blood, so a telltale sign that bugs are present is fecal bloodstains on sheets, which will look like little red specks, Dobrinska said. Also, the bugs are big enough to see if you check closely. Their eggs, on the other hand, are tiny (about 1/32 of an inch).

Dobrinska discourages people from buying used furniture. He said that when people buy new mattresses, they should make sure coverings are used on the mattress and box spring, since old beds often are carted away in the same trucks as new ones. And mattress buyers should carefully examine their new mattress.

When Anderson Pest Solutions technicians visit a home, they first must confirm that bedbugs are the cause of a problem.

"At this point, it's a very invasive type of treatment," he said. "It's not like treating for roaches or ants, where you can put down a species specific bait and treat it."

Treatments can vary, but taking a conventional approach, which includes a precision spray application that is coupled with a heat treatment, usually is the best course of action he said. Bedbugs are attracted to heat, but once the temperatures rise above 113 degrees for more than five minutes, the bugs die.

Heating a housing unit sufficiently to kill bedbugs requires temperatures of about 135 degrees, Dobrinska said, and that means anything that could melt needs to be removed.

The cost to treat a two-bedroom home would start at about $725 for a conventional spray treatment and increase from there, he said.

If a person does find bedbugs, putting clothes and linen in the dryer — heated — is effective at killing the bugs. If the items are taken to a laundromat and a bag is used to carry them, then a clean bag should be used to carry them home, he said. Washing the clothes in hot water also can be effective.

Dobrinska said the majority of Anderson's clients seeking relief from bedbugs usually live in apartment complexes and condominiums, but the company also works with colleges.

Last year North Central College experienced its first case of bedbugs on the campus, said Kimberly Sluis, Dean of Students.

"I called around to other colleges just to say, 'Here is what we are doing and is this consistent with what you are doing.' And, everyone's reaction was, 'You're just dealing with it now?' "

Last year's incident at North Central was considered minor. The student came forward very quickly and the problem was remedied, Sluis said.

"The likelihood that someone is going to transport them from travel or other situations isn't uncommon, so the college has to be prepared," she said.

For more information from the Center's of Disease Control, click here.