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Source: http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/...site=kimberley
28 March, 2014 8:30AM AWST
Deadly mosquito virus research identifies those at greatest risk
By Ben Collins and Vanessa Mills
Visitors to Northern Australia's beautiful and remote landscapes are becoming more likely than locals to make up the cases of potentially deadly Murray Valley Encephalitis Virus (MVEV), research has shown.
Associate Professor Linda Selvey from Curtin University's School of Public Health, led research on a spate of 17 MVEV cases following heavy rains in 2011, and compared this to past epidemics of the mosquito-borne virus. She found the type of person most likely to be infected is changing.
Before 2000, 66 per cent of MVEV victims were children, and 63 per cent were Aboriginal. But after 2000 the percentage of cases for both children and Aboriginal people was just 21 per cent.
"Compared to prior to 2000, cases are more likely now to be non-Aboriginal and adult. What this means is that it's likely that as more people move up into the north, they're getting infected with Murray Valley Encephalitis," says Professor Selvey.
The reason for the changing face of MVEV victims is likely to be related to an increasing number of visitors to the North and the rate at which the virus produces illness...
28 March, 2014 8:30AM AWST
Deadly mosquito virus research identifies those at greatest risk
By Ben Collins and Vanessa Mills
Visitors to Northern Australia's beautiful and remote landscapes are becoming more likely than locals to make up the cases of potentially deadly Murray Valley Encephalitis Virus (MVEV), research has shown.
Associate Professor Linda Selvey from Curtin University's School of Public Health, led research on a spate of 17 MVEV cases following heavy rains in 2011, and compared this to past epidemics of the mosquito-borne virus. She found the type of person most likely to be infected is changing.
Before 2000, 66 per cent of MVEV victims were children, and 63 per cent were Aboriginal. But after 2000 the percentage of cases for both children and Aboriginal people was just 21 per cent.
"Compared to prior to 2000, cases are more likely now to be non-Aboriginal and adult. What this means is that it's likely that as more people move up into the north, they're getting infected with Murray Valley Encephalitis," says Professor Selvey.
The reason for the changing face of MVEV victims is likely to be related to an increasing number of visitors to the North and the rate at which the virus produces illness...