Just when you thought it was safe to bird in America......comes SLE!!
Actually it is quite safe.
Back from the whales of Merimbula
Glen Ingram
"Remember it is always darkest just before you stand on the cat".
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> From: George F. O'Meara <>
> To:
> Subject: Re: Mosquitoes in Florida
> Date: Friday, 5 September 1997 3:54
>
> In recent days, I've send e-mail messages to several individuals who
> were wondering if it was safe to visit Florida. A generic form of my
> reply is given below.
>
> Although medical alerts regarding St. Louis Encephalitis (SLE) have
> been issued for Orange County, FL ( the Orlando area) and Indian River
> County, FL (where I live), there is no plague of mosquitoes carrying SLE
> to humans in either county. In fact, so far this year there have been NO
> reports of human cases of SLE in Florida. The virus that causes SLE
> normally circulates in bird populations during this time of the year.
> Many counties in Florida put out small flocks of birds (ca.8 birds per
> flock) to monitor virus activity. This year, an unusually large number
> of the birds in these flocks have been infected by the virus that causes
> SLE. Many of these flocks are placed in areas where there is a good
> chance of detecting the virus. Local mosquito control agencies use
> information from these flocks to make decisions as to where and when to
> apply insecticides to kill mosquitoes. The medical alert concerning SLE
> advises citizens and visitors to avoid mosquitoes by wearing repellent
> and by limiting outdoor night-time activities. Even though the chances
> of getting SLE are extremely remote, it does hurt to take a few simple
> precautions. Floridian don't seem to be worried about SLE, since in
> Indian River County the public high schools are still playing their
> football games on Friday night. That was not the case back in 1990 when
> we really had an "outbreak" of SLE with Indian River County being the
> epicenter. During 1990, there were more than 200 human cases of SLE in
> Florida with 11 deaths.
>
> So my advice is those considering a visit to Florida in the next few
> weeks - Have a good trip in Florida. It is a great time to visit
> Florida since September is a slow period for tourist attractions.
> Children are back in school, and seasonal visitors have yet to return.
> Thus, you will not encounter long lines at Disney World, Sea World, the
> Florida Keys or other popular locations. It probably will be hot and
> humid, so be prepared for some typical summertime Florida weather.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> George F. O'Meara
>
> ps. That must be a slow grape-vine.
> --
>
> George F. O'Meara
> Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory
> IFAS, University of Florida
> 200 9th Street SE
> Vero Beach, FL 32962 USA
> tel: (561) 778-7200 fax: (561) 778-7205
> FMEL Home Page: http://www.ifas.ufl.edu/~veroweb/
Brenda,
Eleven people died during the SLE outbreak of 1990, but I do not think
any have this year. As far as I know, there haven't been any cases in
humans as yet, simply seroconversions in sentinel chicken flocks. I
would contact Dr. Jon Day at the Florida Medical Entomology Lab for a
factual summary of what is going on. His email address is
(I think)
[According to http://www.ifas.ufl.edu/~veroweb/faculty.htm, it's
<> -JV]
(Marc Slaff)
>
>
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