Chikungunya oh ya its real

[stacko66]

this is the latest in the states. Sounds like the prevention methods are working, so hopefully it will lead to a lower amount of cases:
http://www.edition.cnn.com/2014/12/1...html?hpt=hp_c5

[irienegril]

We just returned from Negril, 12 days. I was worried about the Chick - V also and brought along lots of things to make me feel more comfortable and I'm happy to report none of us (16 in all) were affected. I brought along Eucalyptus/Lemon oil with my diffuser. I ran the diffuser in the morning in our room and it made a difference. One morning I did not use it and was bitten 3 times. I kept this oil as a stand by when Off with Deet was not with us. We also loaded up on vitamin C when we there. We brought tylenol and glucosamine in case someone got sick. We sprayed Deet every morning before heading to the beach and again before sunset. Be vigilant. Go on vacation! Since we did not need the tylenol or joint relief (glucosamine) we left it with friends to share if someone else needed it. It did not rain the entire time we were there. I read the weather is helping to reduce the number of mosquitos also/less or no standing water.

[bambinobu]

my guess is the fewer bites are due to the spraying. ironically begs you to spray less. so question: sun lotion prior to spray or vice versa? Id imagine spray last.

[Melody]

What type of diffuser? Sounds like it was electric.

We just returned from Negril, 12 days. I was worried about the Chick - V also and brought along lots of things to make me feel more comfortable and I'm happy to report none of us (16 in all) were affected. I brought along Eucalyptus/Lemon oil with my diffuser. I ran the diffuser in the morning in our room and it made a difference. One morning I did not use it and was bitten 3 times. I kept this oil as a stand by when Off with Deet was not with us. We also loaded up on vitamin C when we there. We brought tylenol and glucosamine in case someone got sick. We sprayed Deet every morning before heading to the beach and again before sunset. Be vigilant. Go on vacation! Since we did not need the tylenol or joint relief (glucosamine) we left it with friends to share if someone else needed it. It did not rain the entire time we were there. I read the weather is helping to reduce the number of mosquitos also/less or no standing water.

[Melody]

Yes, spray last.

my guess is the fewer bites are due to the spraying. ironically begs you to spray less. so question: sun lotion prior to spray or vice versa? Id imagine spray last.

[NoWorries4 me]

I read sunscreen first then spray. What concerned me was the fact(?) that this combo make the deet absorb more. I used Repel non deet ( eucalyptus/lemon oil) over sunscreen during the day. This allowed me to apply it more often after swimming. Worked like a charm when we were there in November. Luckily for 10 days btwn the cliffs and the beach ,no bites. BTW.....found the Repel on Amazon.

[tahrheel]

Forgive me if this has been discussed. Is it OK to spray DEET based repellents on top of your sunscreen?

[captaind]

Forgive me if this has been discussed. Is it OK to spray DEET based repellents on top of your sunscreen?

I put the sunscreen on and wait 30 minutes then the repellant.

[M&G Montreal]

http://www.cdc.gov/chikungunya/symptoms/index.html

According to the CDC website.."•Once a person has been infected, he or she is likely to be protected from future infections."

Here's hoping embury!!!!

My only concern is "immunity after infection". Our bodies build antibodies to many infections. Many viruses do not recur because of this - mumps, measles, chicken pox. However, I haven't seen any studies on long term effects of having had Chic-V. It was many years before they made the Chicken Pox-Shingles connection. Until they develop a vaccine, I would think that prevention would be the best route. Prevention is usually the better than the cure or post infection immunity, particularly since the long-term effects are not known. Research and choose your bug repellent and use wisely, and according to instructions. Manage those known risks, and enjoy the benefits, without locking yourself in a sterile room to avoid infection. And above all else, speak to you Health Care Professional about it, and the preventative measures they may recommend.

Cap, you say it's a day feeder. Is that ONLY in the daytime (dawn to dusk) for those mosquitoes? Or MOSTLY or USUALLY - meaning there is minimized risk dusk to dawn, as opposed to no risk?

And sunscreen then bug spray; reapply after going in the water. Got it. I'm ready!

[Rob]

M&G,

There have been studies done on Chick-V since its first diagnosed outbreak back in 1952 - over 60 years ago. This is from the World Health Organization:

"Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne viral disease first described during an outbreak in southern Tanzania in 1952. It is an RNA virus that belongs to the alphavirus genus of the family Togaviridae."

Long term effects are known. The reason the CDC says that an infected person is "most likely" immune is that over 60 years of studies have proved it to be true with this as well as other RNA viruses. They are saying "most likely" because they are essentially "covering their ass" so to speak. Just like mumps, chicken pox, etc, there have been rare exceptions to the rule and a few people have contracted these viruses more than once. A friend of mine growing up was written up in a medical journal because he caught chicken pox twice. But he was the exception to the rule - thus the interest in the medical journal.

Countries and territories where locally contracted chikungunya cases have been reported:
AFRICA
Benin
Burundi
Cameroon
Central African Republic
Comoros
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Equatorial Guinea
Gabon
Guinea
Kenya
Madagascar
Malawi
Mauritius
Mayotte
Nigeria
Republic of Congo
Reunion
Senegal
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
South Africa
Sudan
Tanzania
Uganda
Zimbabwe
EUROPE
Italy
France
OCEANIA/PACIFIC ISLANDS
American Samoa
Federal States of Micronesia
New Caledonia
Papua New Guinea
Tonga
ASIA
Bangladesh
Bhutan
Cambodia
China
India
Indonesia
Laos
Malaysia
Maldives
Myanmar (Burma)
Pakistan
Philippines
Saudi Arabia
Singapore
Sri Lanka
Taiwan
Thailand
Timor
Vietnam
Yemen
AMERICAS
Anguilla
Antigua and Barbuda
Aruba
Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Bermuda
Brazil
British Virgin Islands
Cayman Islands
Colombia
Costa Rica
Curacao
Dominica
Dominican Republic
El Salvador
French Guiana
Grenada
Guadeloupe
Guatemala
Guyana
Haiti
Honduras
Jamaica
Martinique
Mexico
Montserrat
Nicaragua
Panama
Paraguay
Puerto Rico
Saint Barthelemy
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Martin
Sint Maarten
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Suriname
Trinidad and Tobago
Turks and Caicos Islands
United States
US Virgin Islands
Venezuela