Insect Bites and What Is Eating You ?

Most insect bites cause local inflammatory reactions that subside within a few hours. However, more severe local symptoms, transmission of a disease-causing pathogen, and systemic allergic reactions are also possible. Mosquito bites can cause varying degrees of local swelling, papular urticaria in children, and rare systemic allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. Papular urticaria is a hypersensitivity reaction most often seen in children following mosquito and flea bites, although a variety of other bites have been implicated in smaller numbers of reports. Systemic allergic reactions can occur in response to the bites of mosquitoes, several types ofblood-sucking flies, fleas, kissing bugs, lice, and ticks.