The travel alert issued for the Caribbean by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC (see related story) in connection with the zika outbreak in the region is obviously not good
news. After all, it’s the height of the tourism season and North America is by far the destination’s biggest source market.
It must be said, St. Maarten/St. Martin is not mentioned specifically, but seeing the proximity of places with ongoing virus transmission like Puerto Rico and Martinique one would be naïve to think the problem won’t reach this area eventually. There is also not so much that can be done to prevent such, because all it takes is for a local mosquito to bite an infected person who came from abroad, especially as four out of five may have no symptoms.
The growing indication that zika can have severe effects on unborn babies makes the disease even scarier. However, this also means particularly pregnant women are being warned and the negative impact on other potential visitors therefore should not be so great.
Important is to minimise the consequences on the island as best possible by combating the blood-sucking insects that spread the virus. As is the case with dengue and chikungunya, the most effective weapon is to limit any standing water that serves as a breeding site.
Other measures include barring mosquitoes from entering by keeping doors, windows and screens closed, wearing long-sleeve shirts and long pants outside, and/or using insect repellent. The new Public Health Ordinance just approved unanimously in Parliament as reported in Saturday’s paper also could be helpful in determining the correct strategy going forward.
The most recent Collective Preventive Services (CPS) release of January 6 on the subject did not mention the possibility of again spraying along the roads with pesticide, but in the past it was argued that doing so too often makes the insects resistant and thus defeats the purpose. Still, taking into account the nature of this latest threat to public health, another round of “fogging” in the districts might well be worth considering.
