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Japanese Encephalitis

 

Japanese encephalitis is a serious viral infection of the brain spread through mosquito bites.

 

Japanese encephalitis is edemic to China and many parts of South East Asia, including recent outbreaks in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and the Torres Strait Islands.

 

If an infected mosquito bites a person, it can take five to fifteen days for symptoms to appear. However, a large percent of infected people exhibit no symptoms. A small percent of patients can get severe symptoms such as high fever, coma, headache and convulsions. In these serious cases, around 33% of people die, with a further 33% having life-long disabilities.

 

Symptoms
 

  • Fever

  • Headache

  • Coma

  • Seizures

  • Muscle pain

  • Diarrhoea

 

Prevention

 

Vaccination

 

Japanese Encephalitis vaccine is the best protection available for the disease. The vaccine can treat patients aged 12 months and older, and is a single injection.   

 

Avoid Mosquitos

 

  • Use mosquito nets if camping

  • Wear long sleeves, long pants and socks, especially at dawn and dusk.

  • Use a strong DEET containing insect repellent (Eg. Bushmans) when outside

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