I may not be the world's greatest expert on chiggers (a type of
mite indigenous to the south), but I certainly have spent a lot
of time contemplating the little buggers over the past six years
(since we moved to N.C.).  Here are some observations gained from
painful experience:

  1. Reactions to chiggers vary greatly from person to person.
     Some people get tiny red bites.  Others (like me) are more
     sensitive and get fairly large swollen sore-like affairs.

  2. Chigger bites are the gift that keeps on giving.  I swear
     that these things will itch for months.

  3. There is a lot of folklore about chiggers.  I think most of
     it is fiction.  I have tried to do research on the critters,
     since they have such an effect on me.  The only book I could
     find on the subject was a *single* book in UNC's special
     collections library.  I have not yet gone through what is
     required to get it.

  4. Based on my experience and that of my family members, the old
     folk remedy of fingernail polish simply doesn't work.  I recall
     reading that the theory upon which it is based (that the chiggers
     burrow into your skin and continue to party there) is false.  I
     think it is more likely that the reaction is to toxins of some
     sort the little pests release.  But this is speculation.

  5. The *best* approach is prevention.  A couple of things work well.
     A good insect repellent (DEET) such as Deep Woods Off liberally
     applied to ankles, waistband, etc. is a good start.  There is
     another preparation called "Chig Away" that is a combination of
     sulfur and some kind of cream (cortisone?) that originally was
     prepared for the Army and is not commercially available.  In
     the summer I put this on my ankles every morning when I get
     up on weekends since I literally can't go outside where we
     live (in the country) without serious consequences.  (They
     apparently don't like sulfur much at all.  You can use sulfur
     as a dust on your body or clothing to repel them.)

  6. No amount of prevention will be *completely* successful.  Forget
     the fingernail polish.  I have finally settled upon a treatment
     that involves topical application of a combination of cortisone
     creme (reduces the inflamation and swelling) and benzocaine
     (relieves the itch).  I won't tell you all the things I've tried.
     Nor will I tell you some of the things my wife does since this
     counts as minor surgery and is best not mentioned (I also think
     it gains nothing).

  7. The swelling and itching can also be significantly relieved
     by the application of hot packs, and this seems to speed recovery
     as well.

Doctors seem not to care much about chiggers.  The urban and suburban
doctors apparently don't encounter them much.  And the rural doctors
seem to regard them as a force of nature that one must endure.  I
suspect that anyone who could come up with a good treatment for chiggers
would make a *lot* of money.