Even after a vacation in regions with dengue or chikungunya, the following applies: Don’t let mosquitoes bite you! Returning travelers not only protect themselves, but above all others, says a travel doctor.
Anyone returning from tropical or subtropical regions should protect themselves well against mosquito bites at home. “We recommend that returning travelers pay consistent attention for another two weeks so that they do not infect the mosquitoes,” says the President of the German Society for Travel Medicine, Tomas Jelinek.
So that they don’t infect the mosquitoes? Yes, you read that right.
Mosquitoes can infect you with tropical diseases
The reason: Viruses that cause dengue fever or chikungunya can be introduced by returning travelers. Especially with dengue, it goes unnoticed – the disease often runs without symptoms. If tiger mosquitoes, which are increasingly occurring in Germany, especially in the south, suck the blood and then bite another person, they may pass on the virus.
This is not a theoretical scenario, says Jelinek. There have been repeated local outbreaks in southern Europe for years. Tiger mosquitoes spread widely there, which then pick up the viruses from returning travelers and pass them on.
Keep risk low: This is how you protect others
With regard to Germany, Jelinek says: “If, for example, they come back from Thailand and then sit in the Rhine floodplains where there are these mosquitoes, then they simply risk that the mosquitoes will become infected. That may not matter to them personally, but it’s just not nice to others.” Thailand is one of many countries where dengue fever is widespread.
That’s why: If in doubt, remember to wear long clothes and mosquito spray even after your vacation to protect yourself from bites and indirectly protect others from infection.
Jelinek expects smaller cases of infection with such originally tropical diseases in Germany too – but with a little precaution, according to the doctor, every returning traveler can reduce the likelihood of this.
** marked with ** or orange underlined Links to sources of supply are partly partner links: If you buy here, you are actively supporting Techzle\.com, because we then receive a small part of the sales proceeds. More info.