Fleas can enter the home on any fabric or fur. Once in the home, their quick breeding cycle means they can rapidly become a nuisance.
This article covers everything you need to know about fleabites, including how to identify and treat them. If uncontrolled, fleas can spread across the body and bite anywhere, especially on people with dense areas of hair on their legs or chest.
Humans are often the secondary options when it comes to fleabites, as they do not make good hosts. They tend to become targets for hungry adult fleas who have not yet found the family pet or another, more suitable host. If an adult or child happens to walk or crawl past an adult flea that has just emerged from its cocoon, they may be the first option for a meal. Most people will not develop noticeable symptoms from a fleabite.
In general, fleas do not carry diseases. Small children and people who are allergic may have a bad reaction. This can include swelling and itching. The skin may become irritated and painful around the bite, and sometimes hives and a rash will appear.
Scratching the bite can cause a secondary infection. In most cases, fleas will be a nuisance and can indicate a household infestation that needs to be dealt with, but they will cause no serious symptoms.
There are two primary complications from fleabites. These are allergic reactions and secondary infections. If a person is bitten and begins to show the following symptoms, they should seek medical attention immediately:. A flea bite may also become infected. If the affected person has swollen glands, extreme pain around the bite, or excessive redness, they should speak with a doctor.
In some cases, fleas carry diseases that can be transmitted through bites, such as flea-borne spotted fever , plague, typhus, and cat scratch fever. Many people are concerned about bed bugs while traveling, and the bites of fleas and bed bugs are easily confused. It is important to know the differences between the bites of these common parasites to avoid treating the wrong symptoms and infestation. A fleabite will appear as a tiny red bump surrounded by a small patch of inflamed skin.
Bites will also tend to continue to occur during a home infestation. A bed bug bite will look more like that of a mosquito with a large, raised, irritated area.
However, mosquito bites tend to be larger and do not appear in patterns. Because of their habitat, the bed bug will produce intermittent bites. Both will itch, but bed bug bites can appear more inflamed. Fleabites generally occur in small clusters on easily accessible skin. They can be anywhere on the body, but bites on feet and ankles are most common. The cat and dog flea are common in Australia.
A flea bite is intensely itchy and secondary infections caused by scratching are common. Adult fleas can survive for some months without feeding. The flea uses its saw-like mandibles jaws to cut through skin, usually on accessible parts of the body such as the legs or feet. Flea saliva contains anticoagulants to encourage the blood to keep flowing.
Female fleas are prompted to lay their eggs after feeding. The eggs are light coloured and oval shaped. The larvae cocoon themselves within weeks of hatching. Vibration, such as footsteps, prompts adult fleas to emerge from their cocoons. This is why you may be bitten after entering a house that has been unoccupied for some time.
Your pet may be irritated by flea bites and scratch often. Check for fleas by parting the fur, particularly around the ears and rump. Look for the fleas themselves or for flea faeces poo. Flea faeces look like miniscule dark specks. For a positive identification, place a few of the specks on a piece of lightly moistened white tissue. Flea faeces will leech a ring of blood into the tissue.
Infested animals should be treated fortnightly for several weeks. Suggestions on treating your pet include:. Your local council can offer information and advice on dealing with a flea infestation. Some general suggestions on eliminating fleas yourself include:. A licensed pest control operator can determine the type, source and extent of the infestation, then use registered insecticides to control the fleas. Good hygiene practices, such as frequent house cleaning, should reduce the risk of further infestations.
For further information about finding a professional pest control operator, please refer to the Better Health Channel fact sheet Pest control services.
This page has been produced in consultation with and approved by:. The type of pain felt in the abdomen can vary greatly. Children may feel stomach pain for a range of reasons and may need treatment. Severe allergic reactions anaphylaxis and asthma attacks need urgent emergency first aid. In an emergency, always call triple zero Flea bites are normally harmless and most will fade in a matter of days. They normally clear up on their own after a few hours or a few days, depending on how you react to the bites and how much or little you scratch them.
And if you have an allergic reaction to flea bites, the symptoms may take many days or even weeks to go away. Some people are hypersensitive extremely sensitive to some of the chemicals found in flea saliva. This makes the bites swell up after a few minutes and form an itchy blister or hives urticaria that lasts for several days or weeks. Papular urticaria is normally harmless and self-limiting, which means that it will go away on its own.
If you scratch your flea bites, they can become infected as scratching can irritate your skin and push harmful bacteria into any open sores. Infected bites may become painful, red and pus-filled, with signs of oozing or crusting around the original site of the bite.
Infected bites should always be examined by a doctor, and you may need to take a course of antibiotics to help your body deal with the infection. Fleas in some parts of the world also carry diseases like typhus or bubonic plague.
Some fleas can also carry dangerous infections like bubonic plague or typhus. Typhus is a serious bacterial infection with symptoms of:. Plague is also a serious bacterial infection. It has many different forms, but bubonic plague is the most common. This causes symptoms of fever, chills, nausea and vomiting. It also infects your lymph nodes, causing characteristic swellings called buboes.
You can treat a flea bite by washing the surrounding area with an antibacterial soap to prevent infection. If your bite swells up, try applying an ice pack to the affected area, or talk to a pharmacist or doctor about using an antihistamine to relieve your symptoms. You should see a doctor if your symptoms get worse, or you see any pus leaking from your bites. This could be a sign that your bite has become infected and you may need antibiotics to get rid of it.
Read more about the best treatment for insect bites. Fleas can live for several weeks or months in carpets, soft furnishings, animal bedding or soil. They do this by creating protective cocoons, and lying dormant inactive until they sense that a potential host is nearby. The best way to prevent flea bites is to stop fleas from infesting your home.
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