Bedbugs — the tiny bloodsucking insects that were once thought to be nearly eradicated in this country — have now become so widespread that neighboring Ohio has petitioned the federal government to allow an industrial insecticide to be used in homes to fight the bedbugs. While apparently not yet as widespread in Kentucky as they are in Ohio, one can expect that tiny insect to soon become a problem on this side of the Ohio River. That’s why we support Ohio’s efforts to halt the spread of bedbugs.
The Ohio Department of Agriculture is seeking an emergency exemption that would allow the use of Propoxur, which is used in commercial buildings, on crops and in flea and tick collars for pets, said Matt Beal, the agency’s assistant chief.
Propoxur, which can cause nausea and vomiting if swallowed, was removed from home use in the 1990s. But despite the other problems it can cause, Propoxur is effective in destroying infestations of bedbugs.
“If used wisely and against the right kind of pest, then I think it will probably offer far more benefit than risk,” said Richard Pollack, a public health entomologist at Harvard University in Boston, of Propoxur.
Bedbugs — which cause itchy red bumps but are not thought to carry diseases — were not considered a problem in Ohio until a dormitory at Ohio State University in Columbus was temporarily closed a few years back because of bedbugs. At about the same time, there was an outbreak of bedbugs hundreds of miles south of Columbus at the University of Florida.
Health officials in Franklin County, which includes Columbus, say they have collected reports of hundreds of infestations in the past year. In fact, Paul Wenning, special projects coordinator with the Franklin County Board of Health, estimates that 70 percent of the hotels and motels in Columbus have battled infestations of bedbugs. “We are rapidly becoming overwhelmed,” he said.
If word gets out that a hotel or motel has bedbugs or had had them, one can be assured that many would-be customers will find somewhere else to spend the night.
Wenning said the extent of the bedbug problem in Columbus is really not known because residents concerned about the stigma of having the bugs in their home do not report them. Few pest control companies in the region have provided information about their calls to deal with bedbugs, he added.
Typically, bedbugs are controlled by washing sheets, thoroughly cleaning infested rooms and using a powerful vacuum to remove bed bugs from cracks and crevices. In some cases, exterminators use pesticides.
Tests at the University of Kentucky show that Propoxur killed 100 percent of the bedbugs exposed to it within 24 hours and kept on killing after eggs hatched. That compares with a 16 percent kill rate after 72 hours for a commonly used household insecticide against one strain of bedbugs found in Cincinnati, and 40 percent in another strain.
No wonder Ohio is seeking permission to expand the use of Propoxur. It works better than anything else now available to eradicate tiny insects that — while not dangerous — are certainly something no one wants in their home. Suddenly, the bedtime advice our mothers to “sleep tight” and “don’t let the bedbugs bite” no longer seems quite so funny.
