What Is Carpet Beetle Dermatitis

Carpet beetle dermatitis presents in children with a history of spending lots of time on a carpet presenting with nondescript itchy patches on skin areas that were in contact with the carpet.

What is carpet beetle dermatitis.

The bristly hairs found on carpet beetle larvae can cause skin irritation. These patients experienced multiple symptoms that included itching pruritic and papulovesicular eruptions. The most common ones include seborrheic dermatitis atopic dermatitis and spongiotic dermatitis. Meanwhile when they molt their dead skin can cause allergic reactions and dermatitis in sensitive individuals.

More often people develop irritation of the eyes and respiratory tract. If only one person in the. Contact dermatitis can occasionally result from exposure to larvae especially over a long period. The irritating nature of the hairs on carpet beetle larvae is well known.

Beginning in 1948 several groups of dermatologists reported on case histories involving dermatitis caused by contact with carpet beetles coleoptera. Both carpet beetles and bed bugs can cause welt like rashes. Carpet beetle larvae can leave irregular holes in carpets and fabric and eating through whole chunks of wool silk feathers and leather. However rashes from bed bugs are from bites while rashes from carpet beetles are from allergic reactions.

Bites and infestations picture of dermatitis from common carpet beetle the common carpet beetle is not common in modern well sanitized homes and even where it is abundant effects from it are not common. Carpet beetle dermatitis is becoming more common on the east coast. Victims may complain of being bitten with an itchy rash to show for it.