More mosquito viruses to watch out for in Houston

Mosquitoes, the tiny pests that Houstonians are more than accustomed to buzzing around and being micrometer-sized nuisances, are having a heavier impact this summer.

According to Harris County Public Health, West Nile virus – a virus transmitted by Culex mosquitoes – is on the rise. There have been 74 confirmed cases of arbovirus detected in Harris County, two dozen more cases this year than the total number of cases reported in 2023.

Dr. Peter Hotez, co-director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, said mosquito-borne diseases may not be the only threat to those who want to enjoy the outdoors. this summer.

Hotez noted that other arboviruses – infections caused by certain arthropods – such as tick-borne diseases, could also increase in numbers during the summer months due to environmental conditions.

Hotez is also closely monitoring the potential increase in other mosquito-borne diseases, such as Zika, Chikungunya and Dengue. All of these are transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes, which are different from the West Nile-carrying mosquitoes.

“With the much hotter summers we’ve had and all the precipitation, I’m kind of holding my breath,” Hotez said.

“We seem to be better prepared to deal with (West Nile) mosquitoes than for Aedes mosquitoes, where you have to go into individual homes and turn over containers of water,” Hotez added. “It’s much more intrusive and less well received. This therefore tends to be more problematic with conventional control methods.

Culex mosquitoes, the carriers of West Nile, can be effectively managed by trucks spraying insecticide in the evening. This practice occurs in most cities and counties where the virus is detected.

As Hotez mentioned, Aedes mosquitoes are harder to repel. However, he noted that there are new technologies, such as the use of genetically modified mosquitoes or Wolbachia technology, a type of bacteria that lives in a mosquito and is a biological control agent that reduces the ability of ‘a mosquito transmits viruses.

Hotez said Houston is a hotbed for arboviruses and factors that drive the spread of these diseases include warming temperatures, increased precipitation, urbanization and poverty.

He advised residents to use insect repellent containing DEET, a common ingredient in insect repellents, and to avoid going outside for prolonged periods in the evening.

Protection against these viruses is important because West Nile can cause severe encephalitis – inflammation of the brain – in adults and children, chronic kidney disease, and long COVID-like symptoms in terms of depression and long-term neurocognitive symptoms.

Unfortunately, Hotez noted that with temperatures getting hotter, the spread of West Nile and potentially other arboviruses is expected to get worse in July and August before improving.