Know thy enemy

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The Chinese (Sun Tzu) adage, "know thy enemy" is appropriate. The tiny mosquito kills more humans than any other animal!

Three species cause the majority of known mosquito-human infections - Anopheles, Aedes, and Culex.

 Anopheles is the malaria vector. Aedes carries Dengue, Yellow Fever, Chikungunya, and Zika. Culex is responsible for West Nile. 

 Anopheles females feed (bite humans) from dusk to dawn and this is why insecticide treated mosquito nets are essential. Aedes females feed during the day, mostly early and late in the day. Topical insecticides are effective deterrents. Recent genetic control strategies involve the sterilization of males. 

 About half of all the deaths in children in Kenema region are due to malaria. A study in 2010 reported 100 deaths due to malaria. This number underestimates the true mortality since other children died without official notice. The most mortalities occur in June, the second month of the rainy season. This likely reflects the life cycle of the Malaria parasite.  children are bitten in May and develop Malaria within a month. I am not involved in the preventative side of malaria. MSF has other programs and teams for that. My job is to respond when a child with malaria arrives in the ER. Time is of the essence. Children can deteriorate quickly. MSF has protocols with cutting edge intervention guidelines. Tonight, I'm studying them again. 

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