Flea bites in children: how dangerous they are and how to treat them

As a rule, flea bites in children lead to significantly more pronounced effects than the same bites, but in adults. In most cases, it is children who need home medical care after massive insect attacks, and sometimes the cases are so serious that they require a doctor’s response and outpatient treatment.

The reasons for a more pronounced reaction of children to flea bites lot. Among them:

• more tender skin and prolonged irritation after an attack of parasites
• severity of an allergic reaction due to incomplete formation of the immune system
• the possibility of some changes in the composition of the blood with heavy flea bites
• Nervous shocks are especially likely when fleas bite a child.

Due to the different susceptibility of children and adults to various medicines, a set of tools for treating flea bites in children will be quite specific.

But even before giving medicines to children, it is necessary to find out exactly whether these are really fleas that bit the child.

 

Flea bites in children: how they look

In general, flea bites in children look the same as in adults, although in most cases the skin lesions are more pronounced. In the photo below are clearly visible multiple skin lesions on the legs of a five year old child:

First of all, noticeable tracks of three to four wounds are striking. On this basis, flea shots are easily confused with bed bug attacks. However, the flea bite chains themselves are more rare and short than those of bedbugs.

Photos of flea bites:

And here is a photograph of a typical picture after bedbug bites - a characteristic bite path is visible:

In place of each flea bite even when an insect is found on the skin, a slight boil-like inflammation is formed. A few minutes after the insect is detached, the hole itself, through which blood sucking occurred, is no longer visible, but right next to it a small under- or intradermal hemorrhage is formed.

On an enlarged photo such pinpoint hemorrhage is seen especially well:

On a note

Such hemorrhages are caused by the enzyme flea saliva, which prevents blood from clotting when bitten. With multiple skin lesions from fleas, the amount of the enzyme entering the blood is so great that it can lead to a generalized reaction of the body, even anaphylactic shock.

It is for pinpoint hemorrhages that the traces of flea attacks are most easily distinguished from the bites of other insects. But these injuries have other distinctive features:

1. Severe pricking pain at the moment of injection - other parasites mask their activities with special painkillers. Fleas do not.
2. Characteristic red spots at the puncture site after two or three days, when the inflammation itself and the skin reaction disappear.
3. Severe itching after bite.
4. The compaction of the skin is usually very strong.

In children, even single flea bites often lead to skin rashes. These are the first harbingers of an allergic reaction. This rash is very similar to the reaction of the skin after a nettle burn. Because of this, traces of flea attacks are often confused with plant allergies. The photo shows a sprinkling on the leg after the bites of a human flea:

Feedback

“We had no fleas at the dacha this summer at the dacha.The first flea bit the child immediately after the arrival, we have not even unpacked things yet. We paid no special attention to this, but in vain. It was already itching all night, but Tanechka was bitten from head to toe. I didn’t sleep, in the middle of the night I started to cry. The next morning she had all the legs, butt and back were in red spots, and between them began a red rash. They anointed her all with Fenistil, they gave me pills for allergies, and the country itself was poisoned with Raptor. After that, fleas bit, but rarely and mostly on the street. "

Irina, St. Petersburg

One of the worst consequences of flea attacks is purpura - profuse hemorrhages under the skin. However, it appears rarely and only if the child is stung by fleas in very large numbers.

On a note

The aggravated reaction of the child to flea bites is called pulikozy and is considered as a separate dermatological disease.

Already, depending on the severity of the child's reaction to flea bites, it is necessary to decide what to do. Sometimes it requires the use of the most affordable means, sometimes - to see a doctor.

 

The first actions, if the child is bitten by fleas

The first thing to do if a child is bitten by fleas is to calm down.It is clear: the child is crying, he is all bitten, he is in pain, you are in shock and confusion. But do not panic.

You need to understand that there is nothing terrible in solitary and even several one-time bites. By themselves, they are dangerous only with regular attacks of parasites.

Nevertheless, even the occasional flea bite has to be carried out, though simple, but cured. For this you need:

1. Wash the skin puncture site with water and antiseptic soap.
2. If measures are taken in the first minutes - apply ice or a cooled compress.
3. Anoint the flea bite with anti-itch remedy. Callamine solution or any hydrocortisone cream is excellent for this. If there is no medicine on hand, you can simply treat the bites with any alcohol solution, even vodka or brandy.

As a rule, in most cases, such a set of measures is enough to relieve the main symptoms of bites - itching and swelling.

However, if pronounced manifestations of allergy have begun, it is necessary to begin a special treatment.

Important!

Regardless of whether some treatment of pulyoza is being carried out, in no case should the child be allowed to comb the injuries.This can lead to the opening of the wound, the introduction of infection, infection and inflammation. Optimally bind the place of bites for half a day-day, until itching. Before this, it is good to treat the bite sites with sulfuric ointment.

 

Generalized allergic reaction in a child

In children, significantly more often than in adults, flea bites cause allergic reactions. The manifestations of allergies in a child can be many, but the main ones are:

• rash in bite area
• swollen lymph nodes
• increase in body temperature to 38-39 ° C
• diarrhea
• excitement and constant anxiety.

All these symptoms are signals for a mandatory consultation with a doctor.

Usually, if the attacks of the parasites do not recur, these symptoms themselves go away in two to three days, but sometimes treatment is necessary. At the same time prescribe antihistamines, Diclofenac-type painkillers, drugs to reduce the temperature.

Feedback

"Our constantly sprinkled after his fleas bite. Especially scary when the swelling begins. And he is very sensitive - one bite is enough for him to start bleeding his eyes and nose.You have to always carry with them Diazolin and Suprastin, so that if something immediately act. "

Anna, Moscow

It is very important not to start self-treatment in these cases. Only an immunologist can determine exactly what to do if a child has a strong allergy to flea bites, and which drugs can be given without the risk of worsening allergies.

 

What infections are able to carry fleas

It should always be remembered that fleas are potential carriers of very dangerous diseases. Therefore, every flea bite on a child is a kind of lottery, whether the pathogen is transmitted to the baby:

• the plague
• brucellosis
• salmonellosis
• hepatitis A
• encephalitis
• anthrax
• trypanosomiasis.

... as well as eggs of a large number of helminth species.

With a single attack, the probability of infecting any of these diseases is extremely low: the flea may not be the carrier, and the immune system can overcome the pathogen. But with frequent and constant bites, the likelihood of infection increases dramatically. Therefore, when detecting bites on the body of the child, it is first necessary to take out the removal of fleas from the room.

 

Folk remedies for the treatment of flea bites in children

Against pulikoza (reactions of the body to flea bites), there are traditional folk remedies. Most of them have a moderate effect, they are generally safe and very accessible. Among them are the following:

• diluted apple cider vinegar that is rubbed on bite spots
• a solution of 1 tablespoon of soda in a glass of water, relieving itching
• A solution of a spoon of honey in two glasses of lemon juice is used to process a large number of bites.

But in general, to treat flea bites as long as the insects themselves remain in the room - this is the same as drinking analgin for severe caries in the tooth. When signs of attacks appear on the child’s body, they should be treated in parallel with actions to rid the room of fleas. Otherwise, such treatment threatens to develop into an endless epic.

 

Fleas from the basement attacked the high-rise building and bite the residents