Malaria

[lamadriver]

No Malaria in CA per say.

Dengue , YES.

I can tell you all you want to know about either;

You dont want either

[captain58sailin]

Tonic water, can help prevent malaria.

[annk]

I caught dengue fever whilst in Honduras, it was extremely unpleasant.
A number of cruisers contract malaria every year in the Rio Dulce. It is unpleasant and can have serious repercussions if you are older or already have other medical issues. I took a preventative whilst in the area stopping whenever we sailed out during the winter months. I took the tablets- Avloclar as I recall- for three years on and off.
There were a few cases of haemoreggic dengie amongst the locals when we were there.

Many cruisers seemed pretty casual about the danger of disease and infections whilst in the area. Most get away with it, some don't.

[Triumphant]

Originally Posted by lamadriver

No Malaria in CA per say.

Dengue , YES.

I can tell you all you want to know about either;

You don't want either

You do not want to get Chikungunya either, it has taken us 7 month to get over it

[colemj]

Originally Posted by captain58sailin

Tonic water, can help prevent malaria.

I like to believe this, since we have a bit every evening with our gin, but the reality is that quinine-resistance is pretty much universal among malarial mosquitos now.

Mark

[captain58sailin]

Funny that is what they use in Nigeria for malaria treatment.

[captain58sailin]

In the hospitals.

[Muckle Flugga]

By FAR the most important step is avoiding being bitten in the first place. DEET is proven effective and proven safe, whatever the "natural health" nuts (I mean afficionados) insist. It has been in use by hundreds of millions of people since the 1940s, and has no significant record of dangers. Whatever dangers may exist are absolutely outweighed by the benefits its protection. There are a few newer products which are also effective, but have frankly not been applied to so much skin, for so long. Only problem with deet is it melts plastic.

Screens, clothing, deet.

I do not take prophylaxis in malarial zones mainly because I am in them for much to most of any given year, and the truly effective (and none are completely so) prophylaxes are damaging in long term consumption, and can have really nasty side effects (lariam, doxycycline : hallucinations and psychotic disturbances, super hypersentitivity to sun respectively, among other horrors etc). Carrying doxycycline and Malarone as first line treatments is a must, however. But PREVENTION is the most important factor. In addition to the delights of Dengue and others (including Japanese encephalitis, for which there is an effective vaccine), with reference to Central America don't forget that botfly larvae are hatched from the bellies of mosquitoes as well…. KEEP THEM AWAY.

For the record, in the average three to four month stint in equatorial tropics, I expect to be bitten around half a dozen times, sometimes less. You really can prevent it. Just be diligent and careful.

[Muckle Flugga]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

Mosquito borne diseases can be almost completely eradicated and could be done so with less money than is now being spent.
It can and has been done with Ag planes (crop dusters) in many places, political will just isn't there, literally millions of lives of children per year could be saved, maybe so many they would starve, I don't know, but you can almost eliminate Malaria now.

Well… perhaps. DDT was getting fairly close. Perhaps this is what your idea is based upon? The trouble is that DDT was killing ALL the insects. This was precipitating an extraordinary environmental catastrophe. By the 1970s raptor numbers were critically low in many areas and there were many other drastic effects. Eliminate mostquitoes? Perhaps… but at what collateral cost?

I think you are being a little hasty in suggesting this.

[boatman61]

Gord.. that was the Polio vaccine that some tried to blame for HIV... however the tinkering with Mozzies was swept under the carpet..
Also.. back then the Independant was just that back then.. new.. and not yet swallowed by the Magnates working to political dictates.. though Court Orders swiftly stifled that and a couple of other big exposes..

[Muckle Flugga]

Originally Posted by boatman61

Gord.. that was the Polio vaccine that some tried to blame for HIV... however the tinkering with Mozzies was swept under the carpet..
Also.. back then the Independant was just that back then.. new.. and not yet swallowed by the Magnates working to political dictates.. though Court Orders swiftly stifled that and a couple of other big exposes..

I am not a fan of conspiracy theories. The world is full of viruses. They frequently jump species. Bushmeat or bites are typical vectors in that area. Feces is another. Occams Razor, mate.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Muckle Flugga

I am not a fan of conspiracy theories. The world is full of viruses. They frequently jump species. Bushmeat or bites are typical vectors in that area. Feces is another. Occams Razor, mate.

Ahahahaaa.. tell me something I don't know.. being raised in Pakistan in the 40's to the 60's I'm familiar with loads and most can be avoided with a pinch of common sense.😉

[colemj]

Originally Posted by captain58sailin

Funny that is what they use in Nigeria for malaria treatment.

So I looked this up to see if I was confused. Quinine resistance is widespread in South America, parts of Central America, South-East Asia and Oceania.

It doesn't appear to occur in Africa and India.

So if one is cruising Africa or India, a gin and tonic every night may be a good prophylactic.

If one is cruising the more usually chosen grounds above, gin and tonics only taste good.

Mark

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by lamadriver

No Malaria in CA per say.

Dengue , YES.

I can tell you all you want to know about either;

You dont want either

Yes, there is malaria throughout CA. 99% a milder strain and thus not a big risk, but should still be treated to avoid long-term complications.

Dengue is potentially a bigger threat. Common dengue is way more unpleasant than the common strain of malaria. They call it "Break Bone Fever" in Belize for a reason. Hemoragic Dengue is unlikely, but can be fatal.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by Triumphant

You do not want to get Chikungunya either, it has taken us 7 month to get over it

Bummer.