The World Mosquito Day is marked annually on August 20 to raise awareness of the dangers of malaria-carrying mosquitoes and throw a spotlight on ongoing efforts in the fight against the world’s deadliest creature. The global day commemorates the 1897 discovery by British doctor Sir Ronald Ross that female Anopheles mosquitoes transmit malaria between humans and this year, the theme is “Harness innovation to reduce the malaria disease burden and save lives.”
Vector-borne diseases that are transmitted by mosquitoes include malaria, leptospirosis, dengue, chikungunya etc. Among the 5 parasite species that cause malaria in humans, 2 pose the greatest threat – P. falciparum and P. vivax where fever, headache and chills are usually the first symptoms of malaria that appear 10–15 days after the infective mosquito bite but may be mild and difficult to recognize however, if left untreated, P. falciparum malaria can reportedly lead to severe illness and death within a period of 24 hours.
Transmitted to humans through the bite of infected Aedes aegypti mosquitoes and Ae. albopictus mosquitoes, dengue is a viral infection found in tropical and sub-tropical climates worldwide, mostly in urban and semi-urban areas and a leading cause of serious illness and death in some Asian and Latin American countries. According to the World Health Organization, “Dengue causes a wide spectrum of disease. This can range from subclinical disease (people may not know they are even infected) to severe flu-like symptoms in those infected. Although less common, some people develop severe dengue, which can be any number of complications associated with severe bleeding, organ impairment and/or plasma leakage. Severe dengue has a higher risk of death when not managed appropriately.”
Check out this list by WHO on vector-borne diseases caused by mosquito bite and the type of pathogen that causes the disease in humans:
1. Mosquito Aedes
Diseases caused:
a) Chikungunya (Type of pathogen – virus)
b) Dengue (Type of pathogen – virus)
c) Lymphatic filariasis (Type of pathogen – parasite)
d) Rift Valley fever (Type of pathogen – virus)
e) Yellow Fever (Type of pathogen – virus)
f) Zika (Type of pathogen – virus)
2. Mosquito Anopheles
Diseases caused:
a) Lymphatic filariasis (Type of pathogen – parasite)
b) Malaria (Type of pathogen – parasite)
3. Mosquito Culex
Diseases caused:
a) Japanese encephalitis (Type of pathogen – virus)
b) Lymphatic filariasis (Type of pathogen – parasite)
c) West Nile fever (Type of pathogen – virus)
Since 2014, major outbreaks of dengue, malaria, chikungunya, yellow fever and Zika have afflicted populations, claimed lives and overwhelmed health systems in many countries. Other diseases such as Chikungunya, leishmaniasis and lymphatic filariasis cause chronic suffering, life-long morbidity, disability and occasional stigmatisation, according to the WHO.