Bed bugs are back

The presence of severe infestations, and the adaptability of bed bugs, increases the capacity of bed bugs to spread rapidly to a broader range of households in a shorter period of time. [...] Implementing effective protocols can manage the bed bug population, can successfully reduce the number and intensity of infestations, and have shown effectiveness in treating bed bug infestations and controlling the spread of bed bugs. [...] The number of bed bug calls to New York City staff rose from 537 calls in 2004 to 6,889 calls in 2007.19 One pest control company reported that the number of bed bug treatments it conducted across the United States rose tenfold from 1999 to 2002.20 A survey of 121 pest control companies in Australia showed a rise in bed bug treatments from 158 in 2000 to 2,464 in 2005.21 Bed bug incidents in New Y [...] According to etymologist Michael Potter, one of the world’s leading experts on bed bugs, “If history repeats itself, bed bugs could again become the stuff of nightmares.”51 PATTerns of infesTATion The widespread infestation of bed bugs in the mid-20th century is largely a function of the highly efficient way infestations become established and spread. [...] Normally, bed bug infestations start in the mattress or bed frame, but infestations can start in any part of a home.57 Bed bugs tend to fragment the colony and move to new harbourages when the harbourage sites in the mattress and frame become heavily populated.