Learn more about Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) and the simple steps you can take to protect yourself and your family from the threat of this mosquito-borne illness this summer.
TRANSCRIPT:
Hello – I’m Dr. Catherine Brown, State Epidemiologist with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. I’d like to talk to you about Eastern Equine Encephalitis, also known as EEE. EEE is a serious illness spread by infected mosquitos.
We had a very active EEE season in 2019. Because this disease comes in 2-3 year cycles, we want to be sure you know how to protect yourself and your loved ones.
While you may be hearing a lot about EEE, it is a very rare disease. Since the virus was first identified in our state in 1938, we have had just over 110 cases.
Where does EEE occur? The majority of cases typically occur in Bristol, Plymouth and Norfolk counties. These regions are home to swampy areas where the birds and mosquitoes that spread EEE live.
However in an active year such as we had in 2019, EEE can occur across the state. With our partners, the state Department of Public Health traps and tests mosquitoes and we create risk maps to of areas with the greatest activity in any particular year.
There is no way to eliminate all risk during an active year but there are several tools that help reduce risk. The most important tool is personal protection.
• Use a repellent with an EPA registered ingredient such as DEET, picaridin, or oil of lemon eucalyptus according to the label instructions.
• When you are outdoors, wear long pants, a long-sleeved shirt and socks. This may not be so easy when the weather is hot, but it will help keep mosquitoes away from your skin.
• Keep mosquitoes out of your house. Repair any holes in your screens and make sure those screens are tightly attached to all your doors and windows.
• When risk is greatest, avoid outdoor activities between dusk and dawn. That will help you avoid bites by the kinds of mosquitoes that are most likely to carry EEE.
Our strategies to control mosquitoes include spraying --from trucks and from the air --to kill adult mosquitoes. Spraying can help temporarily reduce mosquito populations and their ability to spread the virus. The spray does not persist in the environment.
When done at the right time and with good weather, aerial spraying can be useful as a risk reduction tool. But it does not –and cannot – eliminate that risk.
The Department of Public Health wants to keep you safe during EEE season. We’ll be working with state and local partners to prevent this disease and other mosquito-borne illness. But we need your help; let’s work together to stay safe this season.
To learn more about EEE and what you can do to protect yourself and your family, visit our website: www.mass.gov/MosquitoesAndTicks.
