At Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, some dorms are being hit with an infestation of bedbugs (Cimex lectularius).  Students and administration don’t want them and have closed sections of some dorms to treat the problem, according to recent news coverage by WBNS-10 TV.

Bedbug infestations are increasing not only in Ohio, but throughout the country. Some cities have even set up hotlines to call. In New York City, it’s 311. These pesky insects should not live in any dorm, or hotel, hospital, nursing home or place where humans sleep.

Although bedbugs are not known to transmit deadly diseases, their bites can cause intense itching and discomfort.

Attracted by body heat and carbon dioxide, bedbugs dine on human blood and typically leave a distinctive pattern of bites. The bites, often in groups of three or in a line, appear as flat red welts that can cause intense uncomfortable itching. Bedbugs prefer to feed in the pre-dawn hours. Normally we don’t know they’ve been around until the itching starts and drives us bonkers.

Yes, you can see them. Small, flat and oval with brown or rusty coloring, bedbugs are about one-eighth to one quarter of an inch in size. They easily fit through tiny cracks and wall spaces and can be carried into our sleeping space by ordinary means -clothes, furniture, cardboard boxes, luggage etc. They are not attracted so much by dirt and filth as by our exhaled carbon dioxide and warm blood. Often the bedbugs leave black tarry or brown rusty specks in sheets or mattresses as evidence of their feeding.

No, bedbugs should not live in your dorm, or any place else you live. You can best treat the problem by calling a professional who can give advice on prevention and get rid of the bedbugs.