Insect borne disease prevention
When travelling overseas, and in certain areas in Australia, you need to be aware of the dangers of insect-borne diseases, such as malaria, Japanese encephalitis, Ross River virus infection, Dengue and yellow fever. You should take as many precautions as possible to protect yourself against being bitten. Bites can occur at any time, although most mosquitoes bite at dusk and at night. Other insects that can transmit disease include certain ticks and flies. There are a number of things you can do to avoid being bitten by insects.
- Wear protective clothing after dusk; long sleeves and long pants in light colours are best. Mosquitoes are attracted to darker colours.
- Spray your clothing and mosquito nets with an insect repellent containing permethrin, but be careful not to let the clothing touch your eyes and mouth.
- Use insect repellents containing DEET (preferably more than 20 per cent). These should be applied to exposed areas of skin but be careful to wash your hands after application and do not touch your eyes and mouth.
- Always try to stay in accommodation that has insect screens and mosquito netting over the beds. Mosquito coils can be burned and offer some protection for approximately 6 hours.
- Indoors, use plug-in mosquito zappers.
- Sleep in air conditioned rooms where possible, as this reduces the risk of mosquito activity.
It is advisable to have adequate medical insurance when travelling overseas. You should consider medical evacuation as part of this insurance in case you contract a disease and need to be moved to a location with more advanced medical facilities.
Last Reviewed: 20 January 2010
- 1. Zielinski-Gutierrez E, Wirtz RA, Nasci RS. Protection against mosquitoes, ticks and other insects and arthropods. In: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Yellow book. Chapter 2. The pre-travel consultation and advice for travelers. Updated July 2009. Available from: http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/yellowbook/2010/chapter-2/protection-against-mosquitoes-ticks-insects-arthropods.aspx (accessed August 2010).
2. Victorian government. Infectious Diseases epidemiology and surveillance. Avoid getting bitten by mosquitoes [website]. Updated Jan 2008. http://www.health.vic.gov.au/ideas/diseases/avoid_bitten (accessed August 2010).
3. Queensland Health. Mosquito-borne diseases. Updated Nov 2007. http://www.health.qld.gov.au/goodhealthintnq/topics/mosquito.asp (accessed August 2010).
