Insect Bites: Symptoms and Treatment

There are various insects living around us, and not all of them are friendly to us. In many cases, we may get bitten by them. Although insect bites may not seem serious, they can cause insect bite dermatitis. It is important to understand the symptoms left on the skin, as severe cases may require medication and should not be taken lightly. So, what are the symptoms of insect bites? What should we do? Let's take a look below.

Symptoms of Insect Bites

Insect bite dermatitis often occurs during the warm seasons of spring, summer, and autumn. It mainly affects children and adolescents over 1 year old, especially those in the preschool age group. The disease often manifests on the trunk, limbs, and less commonly on the head and face. Skin lesions appear as urticarial papules or urticarial vesicles. The typical lesion resembles a spindle-shaped welt with a small papule or vesicle in the center. Tension vesicles may also appear on the distal ends of the limbs and the palms and soles. The rash may be clustered or scattered, but generally asymmetric. The patient often experiences intense itching, especially at night. Secondary infections such as impetigo may occur due to scratching, but usually without systemic symptoms or local lymphadenopathy. The course of the disease is about 1-2 weeks. After the lesions resolve, temporary hyperpigmentation may occur, but recurrence is common. However, the disease may gradually improve with age or as the number of recurrences increases, until it no longer occurs. The main manifestation of this disease is the appearance of skin rashes, which are spindle-shaped, edematous red papules. They start as small granular papules and then develop into lesions resembling the size of soybeans to peanuts. Sometimes, there are vesicles or occasionally hemorrhagic vesicles in the center of the papules, surrounded by obvious erythema. The rashes often appear in batches, predominantly on the back, waist, and limbs, and may be clustered or scattered. The rashes are extremely itchy and can easily become eroded and lead to secondary infections when scratched. Individual lesions resolve within about 7-10 days, leaving light brown pigmentation. New lesions often continue to occur, so different stages of lesions can be seen in the same individual's skin. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) differentiation, the appearance of rashes in batches, red and hard papules, significant itching, crying and agitation, red tongue tip or sides, or accompanying symptoms such as aversion to wind, fever, nasal congestion and rhinorrhea, red and sore throat, cough, are manifestations of wind-heat stagnation. If the rash is large with vesicles, significant itching and pain, yellow complexion and irritability, or mental fatigue, irregular bowel movements, yellow urine, poor appetite, red tongue with yellow and greasy coating, it is a manifestation of damp-heat stagnation. If the disease has a long duration with recurrent rashes, red and itchy, thirst and bad breath, occasional abdominal pain, dry and hard stool, nocturnal teeth grinding, poor appetite, red tongue with yellow and thick greasy coating, it is a manifestation of accumulation and heat stagnation.

Management of Insect Bites

The etiology of insect bite dermatitis is complex, and traditional treatment methods such as the use of corticosteroids, antihistamines, and anti-inflammatory drugs may temporarily alleviate symptoms but may lead to a recurrence of the disease over time, creating a vicious cycle. Urticaria, which is prone to recurrent episodes, is often treated with topical medications and injections in traditional therapy. However, these treatments only address the symptoms and do not address the underlying cause, resulting in long-term drug resistance and considerable patient discomfort. Experts at Kang Lai deeply recognize the limitations of traditional therapies and propose that the treatment of urticaria should be approached from two perspectives simultaneously:

(1) Antiallergic and desensitization treatment to thoroughly change the allergic constitution.

(2) Complete elimination of toxins in the blood to reduce blood heat and restore normal blood circulation. Internal Treatment Methods: (a) Antihistamines: These drugs can be used as routine therapy and often include both antihistaminic and sedative effects, such as diphenhydramine, pheniramine, chlorpheniramine, and tripelennamine. If these drugs are ineffective, "Compound Glycyrrhizic Acid Tablets" can be prescribed, which have a significant effect on chronic and recalcitrant insect bite dermatitis. Their pharmacological actions include:

• Anti-inflammatory effects: (1) Antiallergic action; (2) Inhibition