Malaria Prevention – Mosquito Nets and Insect Repellents

Body Protection

"Even if you take preventative medication correctly, you don't reduce the risk to zero," Dr. Palles said.

In addition to preventative medication, you should also build a barrier between yourself and the pesky malaria mosquitoes.

The specific steps are as follows:

**Latest Information**

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• Commonality: The United States has no malaria cases. An average of 1,000 cases of malaria are reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta each year, all of which are brought in by tourists.

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Risk factors: People who travel to the suburbs of countries with malaria are at the highest risk.

Tourists camping in tents face far greater risks than businessmen staying in air-conditioned hotel rooms.

The risk is higher during the rainy season when mosquitoes breed than during the dry season.

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> • Affected age group: Most Americans who contract malaria are between the ages of 20 and 39.

This is no coincidence.

This is the best age to travel.

As American tourists age, the mortality rate continues to rise.

However, the highest number of deaths worldwide are among children under the age of 5.

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• Gender differences: 65% of malaria patients reported to the CDC are male.

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·Seeking help: Malaria is giving you little time.

If your family doctor is familiar with this condition, you can see him.

Many emergency room doctors can also treat this disease.

Tropical medicine experts are the ones who know this disease best.

> Buy a mosquito net. Malaria experts say that if you are traveling in tropical regions, a mosquito net is essential.

If possible, spray it with an insecticide containing permethrin.

Dr. Bezlachka says you can use a product called Perma-Kill 4-week Tick Killer.

One bottle of this product is enough to spray four sets of clothes and one mosquito net.

The company that produces this product also supplies the military.

Some outdoor retailers, travel health clinics, and catalog stores sell insecticides in spray cans, but they are not easily spotted.

In addition to mosquito nets, other items should also be treated with Permethrin for soaking and spraying.

Be sure to spray some on the clothes, or soak them in liquid insecticide, and then let them dry.

However, Permethrin cannot be used on the skin.

Dr. Palles says that to protect exposed skin, insect repellents containing 35% DEET (diethylamine m-benzoyl) should be used.

> **Wear light-colored or white clothing** Dr. Bezlachka says, "Mosquitoes like brightly colored clothing," and they especially prefer exposed muscle.

This is why you should wear long-sleeved, long-legged khaki clothes.

"If you cover your skin, then mosquitoes have nowhere to bite," Dr. Bezlachka added.

Consider wearing a mosquito repellent face mask; they can be purchased at surplus supply stores or camping supply stores.

Dr. Bezlachka advises against nighttime activities.

"That's when mosquitoes are most active, and they also love sweat," he said.

In fact, experts recommend staying in sheltered houses or netted tents from dusk to dawn in dangerous areas.

He said, "This is one of the main things I do while traveling."

If you are going to be away from civilization and medical care, such as traveling to Borneo or along the Zambezi River, Dr. Palles recommends that you carry some malaria medication with you just in case.

These types of drugs are usually pyrimethamine or sulfonamides (Fansidar).

It can help you fight malaria before you can see a doctor.

In case I get a fever...

Dr. Zucker, an epidemiologist at the CDC, said that if you take preventative medication and cover your body, your risk of getting malaria will be reduced to near zero.

However, if you develop a fever within 6 days of exposure or several months after returning home, do not wait and see if your condition gets better or worse, or even consider trying to tough it out.

Because the symptoms of malaria are so common to remember-including headache, chills, sweating, back pain, nausea, diarrhea, and cough-it is often misdiagnosed.

You should pick up the phone and call your family doctor as soon as you first notice signs of fever.

If he's not there, call the emergency room.

"Malaria, especially malaria caused by Plasmodium, is developing very rapidly," said Dr. Bezlachka.

Tell your doctor immediately that you have been to a country with malaria.

A blood test can diagnose whether you have the disease.

The treatment usually involves antibiotics or quinine.

Malaria is a deadly disease, but it is preventable.

"If diagnosed and treated properly, malaria is a completely treatable disease," Dr. Zucker said.