Infectious Diseases and Arthropods

In this second edition of Infectious Diseases and Arthropods, Jerome Goddard summarizes the latest thinking about the biological, entomological, and clinical aspects of the major vector-borne diseases around the world. His book covers mosquito-, tick-, and flea-borne diseases, and a variety of other miscellaneous vector-borne diseases, including Chagas' disease, African sleeping sickness, onchocerciasis, scrub typhus, and louse-borne infections. The author provides for each disease a description of the vector involved, notes on its biology and ecology, distribution maps, and general clinical guidelines for treatment and control. Among the diseases fully discussed are malaria, dengue and yellow fevers, lymphatic filariasis, spotted fevers, ehrlichiosis, lyme disease, tularemia, and plague. Other arthropod-caused or related problems-such as myiasis, imaginary insect or mite infestations, and arthropod stings and bites-are also treated. At a time when vector-borne diseases are spreading ever more widely, Infectious Diseases and Arthropods provides physicians, infectious disease specialists, medical entomologists, and public health officials with an up-to-date, readily accessible, gold-standard reference source.

Preface

Infectious diseases have made a strong comeback after a lull in the years immediately following World War II. The ability of microbes to adapt to host immune responses and intense pressure from antibiotic use, combined with societal changes, has contributed to a resurgence of many infectious diseases. In addition, there are now several “new” diseases, including Legionnaires’ disease, Lyme disease, ehrlichiosis,
SARS, toxic shock syndrome, and Ebola hemorrhagic fever. In just the last twenty years we have seen the appearance of a virulent strain of avian influenza that attacks humans, a human variant of “mad cow” disease, and new drug-resistant forms of Staphylococcus aureus. These new or emerging infectious diseases have raised considerable concern about the possibility of widespread and possibly devastating disease epidemics.

It could be argued that at least some of the increase in vector-borne disease is the result of increased recognition and reporting. Specific disease recognition is certainly made easier by newer technologies such as the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). However, such societal changes as population increases, ecological and environmental changes, and especially suburbanization (building homes in tracts of forested lands) are contributing to an increase in the incidence of many of these vector-borne diseases.

In light of this vector-borne disease increase, information about these entities – their distributions, hosts, reservoirs, and vectors – is much needed. Thus, Infectious Diseases and Arthropods, Second Edition is intended to provide physicians, as well as entomologists and other interested parties, with a reference on the biological and entomological aspects of infectious diseases. The primary approach has been to
present readily accessible information on each of the major vector-borne diseases, with an emphasis on the relevant biology and ecology of each one. Since I am writing as an entomologist, the text obviously leans heavily to the organismal side of each disease, with, in some cases, less emphasis on clinical aspects. No effort has been made to present an in-depth review of each disease; instead, there is a middle-of-theroad consensus of current thought on each subject. It is the author’s hope that Infectious Diseases and Arthropods, Second Edition will prove a useful adjunct to the clinical texts employed by infectious disease specialists, public health and travel medicine physicians,  epidemiologists, and others with duties encompassing vectorborne diseases. Treatments are mentioned (but without specific dosages) for the various diseases, but are only intended as general guidelines. They are in no way intended to be the sole, specific treatment for any particular patient. Physicians should consult clinical texts or drug package inserts for the most current recommendations.

Chapter 7.5 on Louse borne infections