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Symptoms
By Mayo Clinic staff
Common signs and symptoms
Typical signs and symptoms of mosquito bites include:
- Soft, initially pale bumps on your skin that can become pink or red
- Itching
The bump that results from a bite can appear immediately or may take up to two days to appear. If you're highly sensitive to mosquito bites, you may have a much larger area of itching.
Severe allergic reaction
Rarely, a serious reaction to mosquito bites might occur, which results in swelling in the throat, significant hives and wheezing. This life-threatening condition (anaphylaxis) requires immediate medical attention.
Mosquito-borne disease
Mosquitoes can transmit serious diseases such as West Nile virus, malaria, yellow fever and dengue fever. Signs and symptoms of a more serious infection may include:
- Fever
- Severe headache
- Neurological changes, such as one-sided muscle weakness
- Body aches
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Swollen glands
- Rash
- Lethargy
- Confusion
- Sensitivity to light
When to see a doctor
If a mosquito bite seems to be associated with more serious signs and symptoms — such as fever, severe headache, body aches, nausea and vomiting — contact your doctor.
- Castells MC. Insect bites. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed March 12, 2010.
- Whitehorn C. Mosquito vectors of infectious disease. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed March 12, 2010.
- Hsia RY. Mosquitoes and mosquito-borne diseases: Pathophysiology and clinical manifestations of mosquito bites (Part I: Mosquitoes). In: Auerbach RS. Wilderness Medicine. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/192842131-3/0/1483/377.html?tocnode=54236352&fromURL=377.html. Accessed April 3, 2010.
- Beware of bug bites and stings. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. http://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm048022.htm. Accessed April 3, 2010.
- Hsia RY. Mosquitoes and mosquito-borne diseases: Pathophysiology and clinical manifestations of mosquito bites (Part II: Diseases). In: Auerbach RS. Wilderness Medicine. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/192894961-2/0/1483/378.html?tocnode=54236358&fromURL=378.html#4-u1.0-B978-0-323-03228-5..50047-1--cesec11_2157. Accessed April 3, 2010.
- West Nile virus facts. Environmental Protection Agency. http://www.epa.gov/reg5rcra/ptb/pest/wnv_facts.htm. Accessed April 3, 2010.
- Mosquito control and West Nile virus. National Biological Information Infrastructure. http://westnilevirus.nbii.gov/mosquitoes.html. Accessed April 3, 2010.
- Mosquitoes. In: Habif TB. Clinical Dermatology. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2009. http://www.mdconsult.com/book/player/book.do?method=display&type=bookPage&decorator=header&eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-7234-3541-9..00024-9--s0845&uniq=192842131&isbn=978-0-7234-3541-9&sid=977693082. Accessed April 3, 2010.
- Active ingredients found in insect repellants. Environmental Protection Agency. http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/health/mosquitoes/ai_insectrp.htm. Accessed April 3, 2010.
- Hsia RY. Mosquitoes and mosquito-borne diseases: Pathophysiology and clinical manifestations of mosquito bites (Part III: Mosquito control). In: Auerbach RS. Wilderness Medicine. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/192894961-2/0/1483/379.html?tocnode=54236406&fromURL=379.html. Accessed April 3, 2010.
- West Nile virus — QA: Insect repellent use and safety. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/insect_repellent.htm. Accessed April 3, 2010.
- Steckelberg JM (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. April 13, 2010.
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