With summer comes increasing temperatures and a rise of pesky bugs that oftentimes swarm those that spend these months outdoors. While mosquitos are the most prevalent culprit of bites during the summer months, most times those bites are an irritating nuisance, rather than a major health issue. However, when are mosquito bites something you have to worry about?
Mosquito bites, when inflamed, are usually around the size of a pea. If the bite becomes closer to the size of an avocado pit (or larger), you may suffer from skeeter syndrome which is a rare allergy to the proteins in mosquito saliva. This can lead to extremely painful and hot to the touch, itchy bites.
Once bitten, reaction to the bite usually appears minutes to hours after contact and will typically fade in approximately a week. However, if your bite becomes swollen or discoloration is spreading beyond the initial bite days after contact, it’s imperative to go to an urgent care. These signs, as well as pus coming out of the bite, could indicate a bacterial infection that could spread if left untreated. This is made worse, and stems from, scratching the itchy bite and transferring germs inside of the wound. A good way to track progress of any bite is to draw an initial circle around the bite with a pen and if swelling or redness extends beyond the initial circle, to see a doctor.
It is also well known that mosquitos can carry viruses such dengue, malaria and West Nile Virus. Approximately 2,000 infections of these types of diseases are reported each year by the Department of Health and Human Services, but many don’t even display symptoms if infected.
While bites from diseased mosquitos won’t look any different, they can cause nausea, vomiting, chills, fever, joint and muscle pain. As with any bite, it’s imperative to monitor both the external and internal symptoms experienced in the following days.
While it can be difficult to completely protect yourself from mosquitoes, small steps like avoiding standing water, wearing bug repellent, and covering exposed skin with loose clothing can help prevent bites in the summer months.
