Ouch! You’ve just been bitten by a mosquito, but what should you do now? As common as mosquito bites can be for Atlanta residents, it’s important to know how to treat these bites. Here’s what you should know about identifying a mosquito bite, how to treat it, whether you may be allergic to mosquitoes, and how to protect your property and family from Atlanta mosquitoes.
What Does A Mosquito Bite In Atlanta Look Like?
Unfortunately, it can be tricky to tell mosquito bites apart from other types of bug bites. After a mosquito bite, the bite mark can appear within a few hours, and most bites appear as tiny, raised bumps on your skin.
Mosquito bites can be itchy, and excessive scratching can break the skin near the bite, cause more swelling, or even lead to temporary redness around the bite mark. The good news is that most mosquito bites don’t cause any permanent harm or damage. The bite may itch for three to four days after you were bitten, but swelling should disappear within a week.
What To Do About Mosquito Bites In Atlanta
If you think a mosquito has bitten you, your first instinct might be to scratch the itchy bite – but this can make the swelling and redness even worse. After a mosquito bite, here’s what you should do:
- Gently wash the bite under soap and water to prevent infection.
- Use an ice pack on the bite for ten minutes to reduce swelling and redness around the bite.
- To reduce the itching, you can mix a tablespoon of baking soda and water together until it has a paste-like consistency and gently spread it across the bite.
- Let the paste sit on the bite for ten minutes, and then wash it off.
- The bite should disappear within a week, but if you begin to experience symptoms like fever, nausea, vomiting, or muscle pain, you should seek medical attention immediately.
Is It Possible To Be Allergic To Mosquito Bites In Atlanta?
While it’s normal to have a mild reaction to a mosquito bite, it’s possible for some people to actually be allergic to mosquito bites. This is called Skeeter’s syndrome, and it occurs when you’re allergic to the protein that mosquitoes inject into your bloodstream. If you have Skeeter’s syndrome, you may experience symptoms such as:
- Extreme swelling
- Excessive itching
- Bruises, hives, or lesions
- Trouble breathing or swelling of the throat
While most people have some reaction to mosquito bites, these more severe reactions are far less common.
How To Protect Your Atlanta Property From Mosquitoes
While it may be normal to deal with a mosquito bite from time to time, nobody should have to be constantly treating their body for mosquito bites. Fortunately, if you enlist the professional help of Tuxedo Mosquito Control, you won’t have to.
Our experienced specialists have been combating mosquitoes for more than twenty years, and we’ll put our experience to good use on your Atlanta property. So, if you’ve got one too many mosquitos near your home, don’t wait – call us today at Tuxedo Mosquito Control to learn more about how our mosquito control services work or to request a free quote.