Argasoz

The causative agents are ticks of the genus Argas (Latreille, 1795) (family Argas , neg. Parasitiform ).

The Persian tick or male Argas persicus (Oken, 1818) resembles a bug. It has a flat, egg-shaped grayish-yellow body, bordered by a welt. The tick reaches 10 mm in length and 6 mm in width. Two pairs of legs are directed forward, two back. With development, the stages of the egg, larva, three nymphs and adults pass sequentially. The female lays from 30 to 100 eggs in the cracks of the houses. It can attack a person ^[1] .

From the walls they crawl on the bed, attack sleeping people from the ceiling. In history, cases have been described when Argas ticks (mainly Argas persicus) flooded the premises so that the inhabitants of a number of villages were forced to leave their homes. There are known cases of mass reproduction of Persian ticks in people's homes, on pigeon houses, in institutions. The Persian tick lives in the walls of human dwellings and attacks sleeping people at night, causing them suffering.

Persian tick bites in people visiting an endemic focus cause malignant fever , which almost does not disappear in many cities of Persia and Egypt. For foreigners, this disease is difficult and may result in death .

A similar lifestyle is the shell mite Argas reflexus (Fabricius, 1794). In appearance, it looks like a toad, found in various countries of Central and Southern Europe; most often parasitizes on pigeons, but often gets into human dwellings, causing great torment to people. These ticks are afraid of light. It attacks a person, causes severe pain and itching , which can last 8 days.

The cases of Argas reflexus habitat are described not only in human housing, but also in a variety of public places (church, theaters, industrial premises, etc.). They are found in the plaster of the walls and ceiling of living rooms, as well as in the crevices of door and window frames and frames. Ticks attack mainly at night ^[2] .

Argas reflexus parasitizes on pigeons, A. persicus - on poultry. With massive bites, these ticks cause a significant loss of blood in birds, poison with toxins ^[3] . A. persicus is a carrier of spirochetosis in birds ^[4] .

• Acrodermatitis
• Argazidoses