Dermatobia hominis

The Life Cycle

Egg Larva Pupa Adult

Egg
Deposit eggs on a host The egg is sticky Catches another organism mid-flight Attaches its eggs to the body then releases it Egg response to the organisms warm skin Hatch and dig their way into the skin of the new host

Larva
Larvae enter the skin through the bite wound or hair follicles Develop inside the subcutaneous layers Larvae breathe through two posterior spiracles which lie flush with the skin of the host. 6 weeks to complete development on its host Drop out to pupate

Pupa

Pupatation take place in the soil Remains in the pupal stage for another month until emerge as adult botflies Pupae do not feed

Adult
Adult bot fly is 12 to 18 mm long Bot flies emerge from the pupal cases Extremely sensitive antennae (making up for poor vision) Have nonfunctional mouthparts Adult does not feed Live only a short time

Infection Symptoms
Myiasis can be caused by larvae burrowing into the skin Moderate inflammation may occur in the area where the larva is found Cause a raised lesion in the skin that becomes hard and sometimes painful Creates painful pustules that secrete pus and other fluids Host can feel the larvae moving inside these raised pustules or lesions Particularly when they shower or cover the wound Secondary bacterial infections do not occur

Treatment
Removing the larvae is with a simple surgical procedure Larvae are covered with petroleum jelly or beeswax to prevent breathing Larvae then come up out of the pustule in order to breathe and can be removed with forceps Antibiotics are prescribed to prevent infection.

The End