Author: Aristos Georgiou / Source: Newsweek
Public health officials have confirmed the presence of the so-called “kissing bug” in Delaware for the first time in the state’s history.
The insect—Triatoma sanguisuga—is a blood-sucking creature that feeds on animals and humans, and has a particular fondness for biting faces.
While the bites themselves are not necessarily dangerous, the bugs can transmit a parasite that causes Chagas disease—a potentially serious illness.According to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a family from Kent County Delaware contacted local health authorities in July 2018 after an insect had bitten their child’s face while she was watching television.
The family told officials that they lived near a heavily wooded area and had not traveled recently outside the region.
Preliminary investigations by the Delaware Division of Public Health identified the insect as a kissing bug. Photographs were then sent to Texas A&M University’s Kissing Bug Citizen Science Program—which documents the insects across the country—before the creature was finally confirmed to be Triatoma sanguisuga by the CDC via analysis of its body shape.
Testing of the insect detected a human blood meal, but was negative for the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, which causes Chagas disease. Fortunately, the girl did not become ill following the bite.
This is the first confirmed identification of the kissing bug in Delaware. Previously, Texas A&M had received reports of a suspected kissing bug in July…
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