Elephantiasis or Lymphatic Filariasis Caused By Mosquito Bites
Elephantiasis or Lymphatic Filariasis is an infection of parasitic roundworms like: Wuchereria Bancrofti, Brugia Malayi, and Brugia Timori. Elephantiasis currently affects 20 million people worldwide.
When an infected mosquito bites a person the mosquito can inject the parasitic roundworms into the bloodstream and travels to your lymph system. The worms may live undetected for years, and then symptoms of Elephantiasis may surface, such as: lymphedema (extremely enlarged/swollen) of the arms, legs, genitalia, and breasts. This enlargement of extremities occurs when the parasites cause blockages in the blood vessels and fluid builds up. Additional bacterial infections and decreased immune function can also result from the infestation in the lymph system.
It takes many mosquito bites over the course of several months to years before one can be infected with Elephantiasis (Lymphatic Filariasis) in a tropical or sub-tropical area. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests ways to avoid mosquito bites and a Lymphatic Filariasis infection:
Sleep under a mosquito net.
Use mosquito repellant on your exposed skin between dusk and dawn.
Take a yearly dose of medicine that kills the worms circulating in the blood.
This article was published on Sunday 29 October, 2006.
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