The good thing is that there aren't any endemic mosquito-born diseases in Malta. So most of the time people seeking treatment for Asian Tiger bites are due to infection or allergic reactions. The most allergic reactions stem from bites of the Asian Tiger as opposed to the common mosquito.
While four cases of dengue fever – which can spread through the Asian tiger mosquito – have been reported in Malta since the beginning of 2022, there is as yet no indication that the mosquito-borne disease is spreading locally.
The onset of symptoms generally occurs 3 to 14 days following the bite of an infected mosquito. Symptoms may range from a slight fever, headache, body aches, rash, nausea, and swollen lymph nodes to the rapid onset of severe headache, high fever, stiff neck, disorientation, muscle weakness, coma, and, rarely, death.
A deadly mosquito-borne virus has been found in Alabama. Health officials say a mosquito carrying Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) was recently discovered in Mobile County. EEE is highly deadly, killing approximately one-third of those who contract it.
Mosquito-borne diseases are those spread by the bite of an infected mosquito. Diseases that are spread to people by mosquitoes include Zika virus, West Nile virus, Chikungunya virus, dengue, and malaria. Employers should protect workers and workers should protect themselves from diseases spread by mosquitoes.
Mosquitoes spread germs through bites. Viruses like West Nile and dengue and parasites like malaria can make you sick. A mosquito gets infected with a virus or parasite when it bites a person or animal that is infected. The infected mosquito can spread germs to other people or animals through bites.
Mosquitoborne Diseases Affecting Travelers
Minnesota residents who travel to other countries can return with mosquitoborne diseases such as malaria, dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever, and zika virus.
Most mosquito-borne diseases do not have specific treatments. Someone with a mosquito-borne infection should get plenty of fluids and rest. Doctors will treat symptoms, such as fever or pain, and watch for any problems. There are prevention medicines and specific treatments for malaria.
Mosquito-borne diseases are spread to people and animals by the bite of an infected mosquito. These infections cannot be passed from person-to-person. There are usually more cases of mosquito-borne diseases where the weather is warmer.
Most areas of Australia do not have the type of mosquitoes that carry dengue. Outbreaks of the disease still occur in North Queensland every year. This happens when someone becomes infected overseas, and is then bitten by a mosquito in Australia. That mosquito can then spread dengue virus to others.
Australia is free of endemic malaria, but Australians can catch the disease when travelling to tropical regions in Asia, Africa, and Central or South America. Most Australian cases of malaria are contracted in Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Indonesia.
On rare occasions, however, mosquitoes are known to transmit disease, including West Nile virus. If you have body aches, diarrhea, fever, headaches, nausea, or other symptoms that appear within about two weeks of the bites and seem to be related, contact your primary care doctor.
During the past 5 years Malta and the rest of Europe has seen an increase in various infectious diseases such as TB, HIV, other STIs, vector borne diseases as well as outbreaks of vaccine preventable diseases notably measles.
In 2022, there were 71 cases of locally acquired dengue, with 65 in France and six in Spain. There was also a peak in cases of West Nile virus, with 1,133 cases and 92 deaths. Most of those cases — 1,112 — were locally acquired in 11 countries, with more than 700 in Italy.
Most of the continental United States has Anopheles mosquitoes (particularly An. freeborni and An. quadrimaculatus), which can spread malaria. Local US mosquito-borne spread has resulted in more than 150 locally acquired cases and more than 60 limited outbreaks in the United States over the past 50 years.
Some symptoms may last a few weeks, such as weakness or fatigue. But they will go away on their own. Most people who develop severe illness from West Nile virus recover. But your recovery could take weeks or months.
Laboratory testing for evidence of arboviral diseases typically involves serologic and molecular testing. For several viruses where humans are an amplifying host, molecular testing is more specific and can be used to confirm the diagnosis in the first week of illness.
Unfortunately, mosquitoes can bite through clothes! Mosquitoes are more likely to attack exposed skin but can still pierce through covered areas to reach your hidden blood vessels. While tight-fitting clothing may protect you from ticks, mosquitoes can easily bypass the fabric to bite you.
Protection against mosquito bites include the use of mosquito bed nets (preferably insecticide-treated nets), the wearing of clothes that cover most of the body, and use of insect repellent on exposed skin.
The symptoms of severe infection (West Nile encephalitis or meningitis) can include headache, high fever, neck stiffness, muscle weakness, stupor, disorientation, tremors, seizures, paralysis, and coma. WNV can cause serious illness, and in some cases, death.
Calamine lotion, over-the-counter hydrocortisone cream and even a cold compress can ease the itch. "It's going to soothe and kind of calm down that intense burning and inflammation that they're feeling in their skin." And, while it's not always easy, it's important to keep the itching to a minimum.
Mosquitoes may bite you more for various reasons, including your blood type, your clothes, your breathing, or even the bacteria living on your skin.