由 home-healthhaven 
Could a deworming pill help get rid of bedbugs? That’s the question an emergency medical specialist has been exploring. According to The New York Times, Dr. Johnathan M. Sheele recently shared his study at a medical conference about how ivermectin, a medicine used for treating heartworm in dogs and various conditions like worms, scabies, and river blindness in humans, might also kill bed bugs.
How ivermectin could work on bed bugs
The way it would work is pretty straightforward. A person with a bed bug infestation takes the pill, then goes to bed, letting the bed bugs bite them. After a few days, the bed bugs that fed on the person would die from the pill’s effects. This process is known as xenointoxication, which means “poisoning the guest.”
Dr. Sheele’s research showed that 60 percent of the bed bugs died after just one pill was taken by the four human participants in the study. It’s possible that higher or more frequent doses could kill even more bed bugs. Importantly, this drug is safe for humans because it targets a chloride channel in bugs that doesn’t exist in humans.
Reactions to the research
While Dr. Sheele emphasized that his study is still in the early stages and that the FDA has not approved ivermectin for bed bug treatment, some experts think he might be onto something. Dr. Frank O. Richards Jr., a parasitologist experienced with using ivermectin for river blindness, expressed enthusiasm and curiosity about the research. He acknowledged, though, that people in the U.S. might be wary of taking a deworming pill.
Dr. Peter J. Hotez, the dean of Baylor College of Medicine’s National School of Tropical Medicine, also found the idea intriguing. He commented that while it might sound a bit crazy, it wasn’t entirely outlandish.
Combining the pill with other bed bug treatments
Dr. Sheele suggested that the deworming pill could be part of a broader strategy to fight bed bugs, alongside methods like heat treatment and mattress covers. His interest in this topic began after treating multiple patients in the emergency room for bed bug bites. He shared an anecdote about a patient who came in with a bag full of bed bugs. “As a physician, there’s nothing you can do for them except giving them Benadryl and steroids for the itching,” he explained to The Times. Now, he’s aiming to conduct a more comprehensive study on using ivermectin to eliminate bed bugs.
For now, though, hiring a professional bed bug specialist remains the best option for those dealing with an infestation.