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Malaria And West Nile: An Emerging Disease

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Malaria and West Nile are reemerging diseases. But, what does that mean? What of its counterpart, an emerging disease? As presented by the World Health Organization, known as WHO, an emerging disease is one that has appeared in a population for the first time, or that may have existed previously but is rapidly increasing in incidence or geographic range, and a reemerging disease is a disease that had decreased in incidence in the global population and was brought under control through effective health care policy and improved living conditions, but began to resurge as a health problem due to changes in the health status of a susceptible population. WHO, along with the help of other health organizations, has basically become the main source …show more content…

One big way to do this is to eliminate any standing water around where you are located. This might include emptying fountains, pots, or small pools to ensure that mosquitoes do not breed, literally, right in your back yard. Travelers, and any person in these areas, may protect themselves from contracting Malaria by seeing their doctor and taking any medication that their doctor prescribes. If you don’t have any medication prescribed, or to take extra precaution, the next best way to ensure a Malaria free time would be to take normal measures to prevent mosquito bites. This may include wearing long sleeves and pants, using bug spray with a high percentage of active chemicals, like deet, and covering any exposed skin (Malaria Prevention, …show more content…

This includes many of the precautionary steps taken with Malaria as stated before. Check any travel plans, or even where you live because WNV is commonly found in Africa, Europe, the Middle East, North America and West Asia. WNV is maintained in nature in a cycle involving transmission between birds and mosquitoes (West Nile Virus, 2011). Also, since WNV outbreaks in animals precede human cases, the establishment of an active animal health surveillance system to detect new cases in birds and horses is essential in providing early warning for veterinary and human public health authorities. In the Americas, it is important to help the community by reporting dead birds to local authorities (West Nile Virus,

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