While mosquito bites result to visible, irritating bites due to an immune reaction, in specific – hypersensitivity, there are inherently varying levels of mosquito bite reactions, the ultimate being a mosquito allergy although not in all cases.
Mosquito allergy or acute hypersensitivity of the human body to mosquito bites start as a reaction of IgG and IgE antibodies to antigens in the mosquito's saliva. From this ensues both Types 1 and 3 Hypersensitivity or the immediate hypersensitivity reactions and second the Type 4 Hypersensitivity or the delayed hypersensitivity reactions to mosquito bites. Usually, in talking about mosquito allergy, the subject would be the first type of hypersensitivity – immediate reaction to mosquito bites.
The mosquito allergy comes from an allergy to the saliva and digestive enzymes that the mosquito injects into your skin to keep your blood from coagulating around the mosquito’s proboscis. Usually the itchy red bump from a mosquito bite will not occur until about 12 to 24 hours after the bite has occurred, so it is hard to tell sometimes how badly you’ve been bitten until it is too late.
Most people will suffer from a mosquito allergy. Most people, even you though you haven’t noticed, even though you’re not allergic. A mosquito allergy will appear as a very red swollen and itchy bump or bumps where mosquitoes have bitten – yes this is allergy. People have a mosquito allergy one way or another, the intensity though only varies.
Other times the mosquito allergy will start from aggravated scratching leading to scarring and subsequent infection. If you’re lucky the mosquito bite symptoms would tame down within a day or two. If not, then that’s it – mosquito allergy. Other times still, some people would have serious bite reactions occurring almost instantly and unexpectedly – face swelling, difficulty in breathing, fever, chill, and even shock. These people though are the ones who biologically have sensitive skin or just plain allergic.
For the most part, children and adolescents are more likely to have a mosquito allergy than adults who have become immune to the mosquito’s sting. However if you have gone a long period of time without getting bitten, then you will suffer a mosquito allergy the first time you get bit again. Also, if you are repeatedly bit, the subsequent bites will begin to show an allergic reaction, getting more and more serious the more you get bitten at only a single time.