June 27, 2013 — In what researchers say is the first public health study of the aerial mosquito spraying method to prevent West Nile virus, a UC Davis study analyzed emergency department records from Sacramento area hospitals during and immediately after aerial sprayings in the summer of 2005. Physicians and scientists from the university and from the California Department of Public Health found no increase in specific diagnoses that are considered most likely to be associated with pesticide exposure, including respiratory, gastrointestinal, skin, eye and neurological conditions.
The study appears in the May-June 2013 issue of Public Health Reports.
This week, mosquito control officials said the region's recent rainstorms and warming temperatures have increased stagnant water and favorable conditions for mosquitoes, which will likely magnify the incidence West Nile virus and the risks of human transmission. The mosquito-borne disease first appeared in the state about 10 years ago. It already has been detected in dead birds and mosquitoes in at least 10 counties in recent weeks, including Sacramento and Yolo. However, the adult mosquito population has yet to increase to levels that require aerial spraying over heavily urbanized areas as was done in the Sacramento region in previous years.
"Unfortunately, West Nile virus is endemic in California and the United States, and the controversy of mosquito management will likely arise every summer," said Estella Geraghty, associate professor of clinical internal medicine at UC Davis and lead author of the study. "Findings from studies such as this one help public health and mosquito control agencies better understand the risks and benefits of their practices."
West Nile virus has become an increasingly serious problem throughout the United States and may become more of a threat as the climate warms. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, West Nile virus is the leading cause of viral encephalitis in the United States. The virus is transmitted to humans and animals through the bite of an infected mosquito. Mosquitoes become infected with the virus when they feed on infected birds.
In California around the time of the study
The study appears in the May-June 2013 issue of Public Health Reports.
This week, mosquito control officials said the region's recent rainstorms and warming temperatures have increased stagnant water and favorable conditions for mosquitoes, which will likely magnify the incidence West Nile virus and the risks of human transmission. The mosquito-borne disease first appeared in the state about 10 years ago. It already has been detected in dead birds and mosquitoes in at least 10 counties in recent weeks, including Sacramento and Yolo. However, the adult mosquito population has yet to increase to levels that require aerial spraying over heavily urbanized areas as was done in the Sacramento region in previous years.
"Unfortunately, West Nile virus is endemic in California and the United States, and the controversy of mosquito management will likely arise every summer," said Estella Geraghty, associate professor of clinical internal medicine at UC Davis and lead author of the study. "Findings from studies such as this one help public health and mosquito control agencies better understand the risks and benefits of their practices."
West Nile virus has become an increasingly serious problem throughout the United States and may become more of a threat as the climate warms. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, West Nile virus is the leading cause of viral encephalitis in the United States. The virus is transmitted to humans and animals through the bite of an infected mosquito. Mosquitoes become infected with the virus when they feed on infected birds.
In California around the time of the study