illnesses caused by pathogens (like parasites, viruses, or bacteria) that
are transmitted to humans (or animals) through the bite of a living
organism
Arthropod borne
diseases
Presented by,
Hemant s m
UGO,
Dr. Jyotirmai
Dr. Jesheela
Objects
• Introduction
• Name some Arthropods borne diseases
• Transmission of arthropod-borne diseases
• Pneumonic of Dengue, Malaria, CHIKUNGYA , Japanese encephalitis
• Common Vector-Borne Diseases in Karnataka
• Principle of arthropod control
• Clinical part
• Homoeopathic part
• Summary
What are Vectors ?
• An organism that carries and transmits a pathogen or genetic material
from one location to another
• Arthropod or other invertebrate which transmits infection by
inoculation into or through the skin or mucous membrane by biting or
by deposits of infective materials on the skin or on food or other
objects
Name some Arthropods borne
diseases
• Filaria
• Scabies
• Dengue
• Japanese encephalitis
• Malaria
• Zika virus disease
• Yellow fever
• CHIKUNGYA
• Kyasanur Forest Disease
• Kala-azar
Mosquito Borne Diseases
Housefly
Typhoid
Antrax Paratyphoid
Poliomyelities Cholera
Amoebiasis
SAND FLY
Kala-azar
Orya
fever . Oriental
sore
Sandfly
fever
RAT FLEA
Chiggerosis
Endemic
typhus
Bubonic
plague
Hymenolepis
TSETSE
LOUSE
Relapsing
fever
Epidemic
typhus
Trench
fever
Pediculosis
Black flea
Onchocerciasis or river
blindness
Reduviid
Chagas Disease
Hard tick
Kyasanur
Tick typhus
forest disease
Tularemia Tick paralysis
Human
Babesiosis
Soft Tick
Q fever
Relapsing
fever
Trombiculid Mite
Scrub Typus
Rickettsial pox
Itch mite
Scabies
CYCLOPS
Guinea-worm
disease
Fish
tapeworm
COCKROACH
Enteric Pathogens
Problem Statement
• Vectors borne disease account for approximately 17% of all infectious
diseases, causing over 700,000 deaths annually and infecting more
than 1 billion people each year.
• High morbidity and mortality
Malaria: ~219 million cases and >400,000 deaths yearly,
especially among children under 5
Dengue: Tens of millions of symptomatic infections, causing
~40,000 deaths annually
Epidemiological Determinants
• Agent factors
• Host factors
• Environmental factors
Agents factors
• Filaria :- Culex mosquito
• Scabies :- Sarcoptes scabiei
• Dengue:- Aedes aegypti
• Japanese encephalitis :- Culex mosquito
• Malaria :- Anopheles mosquito
• Zika virus disease :- Aedes aegypti
• Yellow fever :- Aedes group of mosquitoes
Host factors
• Age : All the age groups are susceptible; severity may be higher in :
-elderly
-infants
-People with comorbidities ( eg., diabetes, cardiovascular diseases)
• Immunity : Infection leads to lifelong immunity; no cross immunity with
dengue or other arboviruses.
• Gender : No significant gender differences, though exposure (due to
occupation or behaviour) may influence infection rates.
• Occupation : Outdoor workers are at higher risks - Farmers, construction
workers etc.
Environmental factors
• Climate: Warm, humid climates support mosquito breeding.
• Outbreaks are more common during and after the rainy
season.
• Urbanization: Poor sanitation, unplanned urban growth and
water storage in open containers promote mosquito breeding.
Transmission of arthropod-borne
diseases
• Direct contact
• Mechanical transmission
• Biological transmission
Direct contact
In this method of spread, the arthropods are directly transferred from
man to man through close contact
• Ex:- scabies and pediculosis
Mechanical transmission
• The disease agent is transmitted mechanically by the arthropod.
• Ex:- transmission of diarrhoea dysentery typhoid food poisoning and
trachoma by housefly.
Biological Transmission
• When the disease agent multiplies or undergoes some developmental
change with or without multiplication in arthropod host.
• A) Propogative:- When disesase agent undergoes no clylical change
but multiplies in the body of the vector.
• B) Cyclo-propogative :- The disease agent undergoes cyclical change
and multiplies in the body of vector
• C) Cyclo-developmental :- The disease agent undergoes cyclical
change but does not multiply in the body of the arthropod.
Dengue
• Mnemonic: "BLEEDS“
• Letter Feature
• B :- Bleeding tendencies (gums, petechiae, etc.)
• L :-Low platelet count (severe thrombocytopenia)
• E :- Eye pain (retro-orbital)
• E :- Erythematous rash ("white islands in a red sea")
• D:-Drop in WBC and platelets
• S :- Shock syndrome (in severe dengue)
MALARIA - "CYCLES"
• C :- Chills and rigors (classic pattern with fever spikes)
• Y :- Yellow skin (jaundice) in severe cases
• C :- Cyclic fever (every 48-72 hrs depending on species)
• L :- Lethargy + fatigue from anemia
• E :- Enlarged spleen and liver
• S :- Smear positive (diagnostic gold standard)
JAPANESE ENCEPALITIS
• J :- Jerk-like movements (seizures, especially in children)
• A :- Altered sensorium - drowsiness, confusion, coma
• P :- Parkinsonian signs - tremors, rigidity, bradykinesia
• A :- Acute high-grade fever (sudden onset)
• N :- Neck stiffness - meningeal signs
• E :- Extrapyramidal symptoms - abnormal movements, dystonia
• S :- Sequelae - long-term neurological complications (motor, cognitive)
• E :-Encephalitis - inflammation of the brain, hallmark of disease
CHIKUNGUNYA
• C :- Chronic arthritis – Joint pain can last weeks to months
• H :- High-grade fever – Sudden onsent, often >102 F
• I :- Incubation period – 2 to 7 days post-mosquito bite
• K :- Knees & other joints painful – symmetrical
polyarthritis/polyarthralgia
• V :- viral exanthem-Maculopapular rash over trunk and limbs
• I :- Irritability- Especially in children, often with febrile seizures
• R :- Retro-orbital pain :- Occasionally seen, like in dengue
• U :- unable to move joints :- Due to stiffness and swelling
• S:- Self-limiting – Recovery in 1-2 weeks, but arthritis may persist
Common Vector-Borne Diseases in
Karnataka
• Dengue
Vector: Aedes aegypti (day-biting mosquito)
Season: Peak during/after monsoon (June-October)
Key symptoms: High fever, body aches, rash, low platelets,
bleeding in severe cases
Urban and semi-urban areas are hotspots
• . CHIKUNGYA
Vector: Aedes aegypti
Season: Monsoon and post-monsoon
Key symptoms: Sudden high fever, severe joint pain, rash
Often co-circulates with dengue; distinguish based on
arthralgia and duration
• Malaria
Vector: Anopheles mosquito
Parasites: Plasmodium falciparum, P. vivax
Season: Monsoon and post-monsoon (but seen year-round in
endemic pockets)
Key symptoms: Cyclical fever, chills, sweating, anemia,
splenomegaly
• Japanese Encephalitis
Vector: Culex mosquitoes (rural, paddy field areas)
Reservoir: Pigs and water birds
Region: Mostly in rural northern Karnataka districts
Key symptoms: High fever, altered sensorium, seizures, high
mortality in severe cases
• Kala-azar (Visceral Leishmaniasis) – Rare
Vector: Sandfly (Phlebotomus argentipes)
Region: Not commonly reported in Karnataka; more prevalent in
Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal Scrub Typhus (increasing in
hilly , forested areas)
Vector: Mite (chigger)
Key features: Fever, eschar (black scab), rash, multi-organ
involvement
Geography: Western Ghats, Coorg ,Chikkamagaluru
• Kyasanur Forest Disease (KFD or Monkey Fever)
Vector: Ticks (mainly Haemaphysalis spp.)
Geography: Endemic to Western Ghats - Shivamogga, Uttara
Kannada,Chikkamagaluru
Symptoms: High fever, hemorrhagic manifestations, CNS
symptoms
Reservoir: Monkeys and rodent
• Environmental control
• Chemical control
• Biological control
• Genetic control
Environmental control
• This offers the best approach to the control of arthropods, because the results are
likely to be permanent.
Examples of environmental manipulation are:
• Elimination of breeding places (source reduction)
• Filling and drainage operation
• Carefully planned water management
• Provision of piped water supply
• Proper disposal of refuse and other wastes
• Cleanliness in and around house, etc
Intensive health education of public as well as political support are essential
prerequisites.
Chemical control
• A wide range of insecticides belonging to the organochlorine, organo-
phosphorus and carbamate groups of compounds are available for
vector13control.
• It must be mentioned that vector control by insecticides alone is no longer
fully effective because resistance has appeared in over 100 species of
arthropods of public health importance.
• This coupled with the danger of environmental contamination has led to
restricted use of many insecticides in some countries.
• To avoid undue environmental pollution, it is now considered essential to
replace gradually the highly persistent compounds such as DDT with
compounds which are readily "biodegradable" and less toxic to man and
animals such as methoxychlor, abate and dursban.
Biological control
• To minimize the environmental pollution with toxic chemicals,great
emphasisis now being placed on biological control.
• The use of larvivororous fish especially Gambusia is well know in
mosquito control.
• Fungi of the Genus Coelomomyces are alsoknown to pathogenic to
mosquitoes.
• A variety of other biological agents (bacteria, fungi , nematodes,
protozoa and viruses) are under study for the control of insects.
Genetic control
• The WHO/ICMR Research Unit at New Delhi has contributed
massively to the techniques of genetic control of mosquitoes.
• Techniques such as sterile male technique, cytoplasmic
incompatibility and chromosomal translocations have been found to
be effective in small field trials.
• In conclusion, it may be stated that these methods are nowhere near
the stage where they can be used large-scale in an effective way.
• Newer methods: New and innovative methods are being sought for
pest control. These are (a) insect growth regulators
(b)chemosterilants, and (c) sex attractants or pheromones.
Some important question to be
asked while taking a fever case
• Ailments from
• Onset and duration
• Changes in Mental State
• Changes in Personal history
• Concomitant symptoms
• Time modalities
• Thermal state
• General modalities
• Family history of fever
Investigations
Important Rubrics
PRIMARY PREVENTION
• Community education and awareness about
mosquito-borne diseases and prevention methods.
• Environmental management: Eliminating standing water in and
around homes. Properly covering and cleaning water storage
containers.
• Promotion of personal protection: Using window screens, mosquito
nets, and repellents.
• Biological and chemical larval control in water sources that cannot be
removed (e.g., using larvicides or introducing larva-eating fish).
SECONDARY PREVENTION
• Surveillance of mosquito populations and disease cases to detect
outbreaks early.
• Targeted residual spraying in high-risk areas where mosquito
densities are increasing.
• Space spraying/fogging in response to early outbreak signs to rapidly
reduce adult mosquito populations.
• Screening for early signs of mosquito-borne diseases (e.g., fever
monitoring in endemic areas).
TERTIARY PREVENTION
• Vector control around homes of infected individuals to
prevent further transmission.
• Post-outbreak clean-up and evaluation to
strengthen future response efforts and reduce
recurrence.
• Community rehabilitation and support for families
affected by severe disease complications.
Diagnose the case
A 9-year-old boy from a rural village is brought to the emergency
department with high-grade fever, vomiting, altered sensorium, and
generalized seizures that started earlier that day. The illness began 3
days ago with headache and lethargy, and his condition has rapidly
worsened. His family reports that the area has many rice paddies
and pigs nearby, and there was a recent local outbreak
of similar cases.
On examination :-Temperature 40C
Neck stiffness present
Glasgow coma scale 9/15
• A 12-year-old boy is brought to a clinic by his mother
with complaints of intense itching, especially at night,
for the past 2 weeks. On examination, there are
multiple small papules and burrows in the web spaces
of his fingers, wrists, and around his waistline. His
younger siblings have similar symptoms, and they live
in a crowded household.
• A 40-year-old male from a rural village presents to the
primary health center with progressive swelling of his left leg
over the past 3 years. He complains of occasional fever with
chills, heaviness in the leg, and thickened skin. On
examination, the left leg is grossly enlarged with skin
thickening and hyperpigmentation. There are no signs of
acute infection at present. The patient reports similar cases
in his locality and mentions frequent mosquito bites.
• A 25-year-old female presents to the outpatient clinic
with a 4-day history of high-grade fever, severe
headache, retro-orbital pain, muscle and joint pain,
and a rash that appeared on the third day of illness.
She recently returned from a visit to Thailand. On
physical examination, she is febrile (38.9°C), with a
diffuse maculopapular rash, mild bleeding from gums,
and tenderness on palpation of the limbs.
