The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a health alert after five acquired cases of malaria have been detected in the U.S. in the last two months — including four cases in the neighboring state of Florida. This marks the first time in 20 years malaria infections have been confirmed in people who have not traveled outside the U.S.
Health officials are warning doctors and the public to be aware of the possibility of infection. Experts say Georgia residents should take precautions against mosquito bites, but that it’s unlikely for malaria to begin spreading in our state.
“I don’t want you to be overly concerned about it,” said Elmer Gray, an entomologist with the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Service about the threat of malaria in Georgia. “But I want you to be aware.”
There were four cases of malaria detected in Florida and one in Texas, according to the CDC. The cases in the two states don’t seem to be related to each other, according to the CDC.
Despite these cases, the CDC said the risk of locally acquired malaria remains “extremely low” in the United States. Anopheles mosquitoes, found throughout many regions of the country including Georgia, are capable of transmitting malaria if they feed on a malaria-infected person.
Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease that spreads to humans through the bites of infected mosquitoes. Malaria is not spread from person to person. Infected people can suffer very high fevers, chills and flu-like illness. If malaria goes untreated, it can be life-threatening.
The CDC said doctors should have access to malaria tests and think about how to access the intravenous drug that is the first-line treatment for severe malaria in the United States. The CDC advises that “patients suspected of having malaria should be urgently evaluated in a facility that is able to provide rapid diagnosis and treatment, within 24 hours of presentation.” The agency said that the people who were recently diagnosed with malaria received treatment and “are improving.”
About 2,000 U.S. cases of malaria are diagnosed each year — the vast majority in travelers coming from countries where malaria commonly spreads. In Georgia, there are about 50 malaria cases annually — also from travelers from other countries, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health. Gray said what happens in these cases with these cases, people travel to other places and catch malaria from an infected mosquito. They then return home and develop symptoms. The last locally acquired malaria case in Georgia goes back at least two decades with a probable case in 1999, according to the DPH.
“The malaria pathogen has not been in the environment. It’s pretty much gone away in the Georgia area,” he said.
Malaria was once a prevalent disease in the U.S. but was eradicated in the early 1950s through the use of insecticides, drainage ditches, and the building of houses with window screens. The Anopheles mosquitoes commonly live near freshwater marshy areas, and other standing pools of water. They are less likely to be in people’s backyards.
With malaria no longer endemic and the number of travelers infected so small, the potential for it to spread remains very low. And Gray said features taken for granted in higher-income countries — including air conditioning, screens on windows, and drainage systems also help lower and prevent exposure to malaria-carrying mosquitoes.
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Credit: cust
Meanwhile, Gray, who is a public health extension specialist and whose research mainly focuses on mosquitoes and other insects such as black flies, said he is more concerned about the West Nile virus this summer in Georgia. There have been two human cases already this year, and the season typically peaks in August and September.
West Nile is most often carried in Georgia by the Southern house mosquito. These mosquitoes like it dry. They hang out in storm drains. In most cases, a healthy immune system can fight off West Nile. But in rare cases — typically involving elderly people, those with compromised immune systems or very young children — the disease can progress and show symptoms such as a fever and rash. In extremely rare cases, the virus can lead to encephalitis (swelling of the brain) and death.
Georgia is home to 63 mosquito species. And when it comes to battling mosquitoes of all kinds, vigilance is the key, Gray said.
“There are some stuff you can do easily and I want this to be on your radar,” said Gray about malaria. “And the same protective practices that protect you from West Nile will also protect you from malaria.”
Tips to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes:
1. Wearing light-colored clothing will help keep mosquitoes at bay. Mosquitoes are more attracted to people wearing darker colors because they stand out more.
2. When outside in a mosquito-prone area — like on a ballfield, out in the yard, out in the woods or near a marshy area, Gray said the most effective thing people can do to protect themselves is to use insect repellent. There are several commercially available, EPA-approved repellents, like picaridin, lemon eucalyptus oil and IR3535. Gray prefers products with DEET because they have been tested and proved safe for children as young as 2 months old. A product with a 10 percent to 30 percent concentration is good and protects for several hours. Gray said. When treating children, an adult should apply the repellent to his or her hands first and then rub the repellent onto the child’s exposed skin, but never to a child’s hands. Small children have a habit of sticking their hands in their mouths, and if they apply the repellent themselves, there’s a good chance they’ll ingest some of it, he added.
3. Mosquitoes need standing water to reproduce, so eliminate sources of standing water in yards and landscapes.
4. Keeping grass trimmed and the vegetation around the borders of the yards cut back can also help reduce the areas where adult mosquitoes hide during the heat of the day.
5. Mosquitoes are most active at dawn and dusk, so people may want to stay inside during those times to avoid bites. Another tip: consider a box fan on your porch to deter mosquitoes.
Source: Elmer Gray, an entomologist with University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Service
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