Resurgencia de la chinche de cama Cimex lectularius (Heteroptera: Cimicidae) en Argentina. (Spanish)

The bed bug, Cimex lectularius Linnaeus, is a hemimetabolous insect of the family Cimicidae, Order Hemiptera and is a hematophagous ectoparasite of birds and mammals. Two species of this family are predominant: C. lectularius and C. hemipterus Fabricius. Bed bugs have long plagued humans in their living environment. Historically, bed bugs were noted throughout the ages. Before World War II infestations by bed bugs were very common, but after the war the prevalence of infection declined to a point where they were rare, and particularly since the 50s, when cases of infection decreased significantly due to the use of synthetic insecticides, especially dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT). However, recently, the situation seems to have changed and experts in the field talk about a “resurgence” of the plague worldwide. Scientific researches and even newspapers’ disclosures about bed bugs do nothing more than show that we are in the presence of a major health problem and that our country is no stranger to it. The following study was conducted in order to determine whether bed bugs are resurging in Argentina. The discovery of this urban pest in different cities of Argentina can now be confidently confirmed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Las chinches de cama, Cimex lectularius Linnaeus, son insectos hemimetábolos de la familia Cimicidae, Orden Hemiptera. Son ectoparásitos hematófagos de aves y mamíferos, y existen dos especies predominantes: C. lectularius y C. hemipterus Fabricius. Las chinches de cama han sido plaga en el ambiente humano a lo largo de toda su historia. Antes de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, las infestaciones con chinches de cama eran muy comunes; pero después de la guerra, la prevalencia de infestación mundial experimentó una marcada disminución; y particularmente a partir de los años 1950, los casos empezaron a disminuir de manera significativa debido al uso de insecticidas de síntesis, principalmente el dicloro difenil tricloroetano (DDT). Sin embargo, en los últimos años, la situación parece haber cambiado y expertos en la materia hablan de un “resurgimiento” de la plaga en todo el mundo. Diferentes trabajos científicos, e incluso la divulgación en los medios de comunicación, no hacen más que mostrar que estamos ante la presencia de un importante problema sanitario como es el resurgimiento de este insecto parásito y que la Argentina no es ajena a él. En el presente trabajo se pudo confirmar la presencia de esta plaga urbana asociada al hábitat humano en diferentes ciudades de la Argentina. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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