These variations make it challenging to tell them apart from other insect bites.2
close-up of bed bug bites in a zig-zag pattern on someone’s arm
Artmim / Getty Images
What Symptoms Should You Look For?
Bed bugs typically don’t cause serious harm, but their bites can be uncomfortable, and infestations can cause stress and insomnia.
In some cases, bed bug bites can cause skin infections or more severe reactions. Common symptoms include redness, swelling, and itchiness.3
Red or Swollen Bumps
Bed bug bites often have a red dot in the center, surrounded by raised, irritated skin.4 This is considered the original bite mark, which then swelled as a result of your body’s immune response to the insect’s saliva.
Although bed bugs can bite you anywhere, the most common places are typically exposed ones, like the face and neck, arms, and hands.3
Itching
When bed bugs bite you, they inject their saliva into your skin as they feed, causing a mild allergic reaction in most people, creating intense itchiness.5
The itchiness can start almost as soon as you’re bitten, or it can take days or weeks before you feel itchy.
Clustering
Bed bugs often travel during their nocturnal (nighttime) feedings, creating a series of bites along one area of the skin. This can cause lines of bites, sometimes in a zig-zag pattern, or clusters of three or more bites in a small area.65
In more severe infestations, it’s also possible to develop a rash or dermatitis (skin inflammation) from bed bugs.2
Skin Infections
Some people may develop secondary skin infections from bed bug bites.
