Bedbugs — Professional intervention

Bedbugs have made a strong comeback in French homes since the 2000s. They hide during the day in mattress seams, headboards, skirting boards, electrical sockets and books, and bite at night to feed on human blood. Their bites leave clusters of red welts, often on the arms and legs, and can cause significant allergic reactions as well as serious psychological stress linked to sleep loss. They spread through travel, second-hand furniture and the common areas of apartment buildings, and they resist over-the-counter treatments.

Eradicating bedbugs requires a rigorous professional protocol: precise diagnosis through visual inspection or detection dog, a combined treatment using high-temperature steam (which kills the eggs), professional insecticides on harbourage areas, and typically two to three visits spaced two to three weeks apart to target adults and the eggs that hatch between interventions. Throwing out mattresses and furniture is rarely necessary and can even spread the infestation elsewhere.