Review of Field Tests on Bed Bug Control Technologies
Economic, environmental, and health concerns with bed bug control technologies and management options are of interest to public health and pest management agencies, who often receive and need to respond to inquiries regarding bed bugs (Hemiptera: Cimex). However, control technologies are constantly changing as evidence emerges for evaluating their efficacy/feasibility and acceptance by regulators.
Potter (2011) provides a detailed history of technologies and products that have been used to control bed bugs over the millennia. The movement went from oils, fire, and gunpowders to the creation of the first residual chemicals that decimated bed bug populations in the 1940s to the 1970s. The last effective residual products (e.g., chlorpyrifos, propoxur) were removed from indoor use in 1999 and, since that time, bed bug populations resurged to epidemic levels across the world. This document reviews the bed bug control technologies that have been evaluated in the field from 2005 to 2014 and will also comment on emerging technologies and pesticides.