Chikungunya

[KSUDiver]

Perhaps as more vaccine is produced and after full-time residents all have a chance to get inoculated it will be opened up to more people...like visitors? I do love me a good vaccine, and would probably do it, even at 60% effectiveness or whatever it was. But I do see the advantages to taking care of the local, full-time population first.

Also, I'm a high school science teacher and I too appreciate the educational responses here. I just loooooove when one of my students comes in waving something around and proclaiming it to be "chemical free." Almost as much as I love hearing "eh, it's just a theory." Teachable moments, all. After I stop laughing anyway.

Alright, well thanks to this thread I am now motivated to see who sells high-concentration DEET in Nebraska in December!

 

[DandyDon]

Wasn't but a couple years ago they had patient in the hospital hallways from dengue, no room at the inn. And what is that new mossie born thing they found in Belize? That should be along soon too I imagine.

Brazil maybe? This one sounds like the worst ever. Mildly irritating to mom, but kills babies born later...
Brazil warns against pregnancy due to spreading virus - CNN.com

 

[cvchief]

Alright, well thanks to this thread I am now motivated to see who sells high-concentration DEET in Nebraska in December!

Read the science on that. I think there is an optimal level much lower than the 100% DEET that goes on like battery acid. (Bought it when Coz had patients stacked in the hospital hallways.)

 

[Queen Triggerfish]

...
Alright, well thanks to this thread I am now motivated to see who sells high-concentration DEET in Nebraska in December!

I'm not sure if you have REI stores, but I found 98% DEET at an REI store in the Minneapolis area yesterday. There were a couple different brands, and they also had permathrin for treating clothing. 98% DEET seems a bit high, since 30% seems to be the popular recommendation, but mosquitos love me so I'm going to try it for a few days. (If I get a rash, I bet I'll prefer a rash to the reaction I got from the "all natural" lionfish stings I got on a similar trip!)

cvchief - just saw your post. Did you try the 100% DEET? Was it brutal?

 

[El Graduado]

Brazil maybe?

Actually, the first cases of indigenous (autochthonous) Zika Fever (another dengue/yellow fever type virus) in Mexico were found in Chiapas by the World Health Organization a month ago. So far, it has been reported in the Americas in Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guyana, Guatemala, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname and Venezuela. Like Dengue, it will probably spread to include areas wherever people and the Aedes mosquito get together. That includes the US.

 

[KSUDiver]

Thanks guys! I actually did refresh myself a bit on what the concentration of DEET actually means, just to make sure my facts were straight. For anyone else interested, basically it seems like 10% will get you about two hours of protection, and higher concentrations give you a longer time period of protection, and somewhat stronger protection. After about 50% though, the level of protection is not as significant, but the length of time of protection is increased. HTH, and here's a CDC fact sheet in case anyone wants to check it out. The title says something about malaria, but it's mostly about DEET.

http://www.cdc.gov/malaria/toolkit/DEET.pdf

No REI close by, unfortunately, but I did find another sporting goods store that carries some better options than the 7% I have at home.

 

[Candiru]

Picaradin is the the way to go. Menards has it for somewhere around 5$ per bottle. It smells like apples when you spray it on but after it dries it has no smell and is not greasy like deet. It does not damage synthetic materials like deet does and it's the preferred mosquito repellent of the W.H.O. It's excellent give it a try.

 

[cvchief]

cvchief - just saw your post. Did you try the 100% DEET? Was it brutal?

Yep. It was a little brutal. Somewhere between battery acid and jet fuel. Worked....

Seriously though I think at that high a concentration, it will melt plastic and such.....

 

[El Graduado]

Picaradin is the the way to go. ...it's the preferred mosquito repellent of the W.H.O.

I also have read several websites that make the same claim: "Picaridin is the first choice of the World Health Organization," or "WHO recommends Picaridin over DEET," and suchlike. However, those websites never actually quote WHO directly. That's because WHO does not recommend Picaridin over DEET for protecting from Aedes aegypti mosquitos; it recommends Picaridin over DEET for protection over various species of Anopheles mosquitos, because the WHO studies those websites were alluding to were studies on the prevention of malaria, not dengue, chikungunya, or zika.

Here's something else I read: "In short, picaridin matches DEET in potency across multiple species of the Anopheles genus." Further: "After analyzing the previous studies, we are confident that picaridin, at the very least, is as effective as DEET in preventing bites from mosquitoes that are vectors for malaria. However, picaridin may not offer sufficient protection when diseases besides malaria are factored in; several studies demonstrate that DEET is more effective against other mosquito species such as Aedes aegypti, which is known to carry yellow fever. Travelers may still want to use DEET in areas where multiple mosquito borne illnesses are prevalent."

 

[gopbroek]

Alright, well thanks to this thread I am now motivated to see who sells high-concentration DEET in Nebraska in December!

There is always Amazon Amazon.com : Repel 94108 100 Insect Repellent Pump Spray, 98.11-Percent DEET, 4-Ounce : Insect Repelling Products : Patio, Lawn & Garden
I got some for a trip to Roatan, not a single bite but now I am sensitive to high concentrate. Be careful of plastics, it will melt some types.