Can Taking A Pill Before Bed Get Rid Of Bed Bugs?
Bed Bug Pill? Brooke BorelA so-called "bed bug pill" has been in the news. Is it for real? Can you cure a bed bug infestation just by downing drugs? While the idea has appeal, particularly for people afflicted with nightly bites and for scientists dealing with a pest that is increasingly difficult to kill, the short answer is probably no. But before we get to the long answer, some background. Bloomberg recently reported on research from the Eastern Virginia Medical School which showed that ivermectin, an anti-parasite drug, was fatal to bed bugs (specifically, they used Merck's brand Stromectol. Merck was not involved in the study). The researchers presented the work at the annual meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, and it is under review for formal publication in a medical journal. For now, here are the basics. The researchers ran three experiments on groups of...