Panama has always had a mosquito problem throughout history. The first time that the French tried to build the Panama Canal they failed horribly as most of the workers died of Yellow Fever from mosquito bites. Since then, the Aedes aegypti, an African breed of mosquitos have been terrorizing people in the Panama region. An addition to this breed in recent times has been the Aedes albopictus, which according to scientists is an even more dangerous breed as it reproduced much faster and bites people in the daytime as well.
The History
Carlos Juan Finlay was a Cuban epidemiologist recognized as a pioneer in the research of yellow fever, determining that it was transmitted through mosquitoes Aedes aegypti.
It was a Cuban doctor by the name of Carlos Findlay who discovered that the Aedes aegypti breed of mosquitoes carry yellow fever, and since then various attempts have been carried out to snuff both the disease and its cause. And although the missions carried out could successfully reduce the spread of yellow fever, the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are still widely present in the region, and of recent the terrorizing tiger mosquitoes have joined their ranks. The Smithsonian Tropical Research Centre has been tasked with the mission of discovering as much knowledge about these two species and figure out quick remedies that can be pushed into the population.
According to the experts, the Aedes albopictus, or commonly known as ‘Tiger Mosquitoes’ due to the visible stripes on their belly regions, are more dangerous than their brothers Aedes aegypti. While both carry more or less the same set of diseases, it is the former which has the ability to breed in both hot and cold regions, which the Aedes aegypti was not capable of. So, the tiger mosquitoes are spreading at an alarming rate all over Panama and scientists are considering this as serious source of concern since this might signal the return of a yellow fever epidemic upon the country of Panama.
How To Protect Yourself?
Some of the top scientists have been applied to the case to figure out what the effects of such a situation may be, and as to how far reaching the spread of these misquotes will be inside Panama. They are scanning the countryside and gathering every bit of intelligence possible on how these mosquitoes are spreading. They are of the belief that it is stagnant water which is the primary basis of these mosquitoes breeding so quickly. Upon some research they have come to the conclusion that the larvae are mostly travelling to the cities via car wheels which pick them up while driving through puddles.
Since rains in Panama are quite common, the Smithsonian Tropical Research Centre has appealed to all the people to ensure that they don’t leave stagnant water at or around home. With the tiger mosquito problem almost turning out to be an epidemic, this is something that all citizens of Panama need to adhere to in order to safeguard themselves against diseases. Another tip from the professionals is to boil all water before usage as it may carry larvae which will die upon being heated.