Fight the Bite! Day and Night Campaign – Prevention of West Nile Virus and other mosquito-transmitted illnesses

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Fight the Bite! Day and Night Campaign – Prevention of West Nile Virus and other mosquito-transmitted illnesses

To: UA Campus Community

From:

Harry McDermott, M.D., M.P.H., Public Health Officer, Campus Health Services
Steve Holland, Chief Risk Officer, Risk Management Services

Subject: Fight the Bite! Day and Night Campaign – Prevention of West Nile Virus and other mosquito-transmitted illnesses

Date: September 8, 2017

Fall may be here but the importance of preventing West Nile Virus and other mosquito-transmitted illnesses (e.g. Dengue Fever, Chikungunya and Zika) continues. This is a reminder to heed the tips offered by the Pima County Health Department through its Fight the Bite! Day and Night campaign.  For more info, see: http://webcms.pima.gov/cms/one.aspx?portalId=169&pageId=19544 and https://webcms.pima.gov/UserFiles/Servers/Server_6/File/Government/Flood%20Control/Public%20Outreach/brochure-mosquitoes.pdf.

West Nile Virus (WNV) is a mosquito borne virus endemic in Arizona mosquitoes since 2003, with the mosquito season peaking from May through October. In Arizona during 2016, there were 78 confirmed or probable human WNV cases and 5 fatalities reported.  Pima County had 4 confirmed or probable cases. There have been no locally acquired cases of Chikungunya or Zika infections in Pima County or Arizona and 57 travel-associated cases of Zika.

Facilities Management prevents mosquito breeding on campus by treating outdoor areas of standing water with a safe mosquito larvicide.  We ask the campus community to help fight the bite by reporting standing water and mosquito concerns to your building manager or to Facilities Management at (520) 621-3000. For additional information about UA mosquito management, and for a flyer to post for building occupants, see: http://risk.arizona.edu/mosquitoes.

Mosquito-borne illness is also a national and international concern. Travelers may want to review additional information at the following links from the Center for Disease Control and the Arizona Department of Health Services:

The UA College of Public Health's Kasey Ernst and her team developed a mobile application called Kidenga to track and report symptoms of mosquito-borne diseases – a useful tool for those traveling in higher-risk regions. For more information, please visit https://publichealth.arizona.edu/news/2017/ua-mobile-app-tracks-zika-virus-summer-travelers.

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