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Joanna M. Foster of Think Progress writes Dengue Surges In Latin America, based on a report by the Pan American Health Organization, PAHA, showing that "cases of dengue fever have nearly quintupled in Latin American, over the last 10 years.
According to PAHO, in 2013 there were more than 2.3 million cases and 1,289 deaths. A decade ago, only 517,617 cases were documented in Latin America. Uncontrolled urbanization, absence of basic services, failure to control the environment and climate change, were blamed for the spread of the disease. The report said that nearly 500 million people in the Americas now live at risk of contracting dengue.
Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne disease with symptoms very similar to the flu. While there are four closely related viruses that can cause dengue fever, they are all carried by female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes and in more northern regions, the Aedes albopictus. Dengue fever is most prevalent in South and Central America, as well as Southeast Asia, Africa and the Western Pacific. Globally the prevalence of the disease has seen a dramatic uptick since the 1980s. Its spread has been linked to the changing climate as temperatures increase, rainfall patterns change and summers become longer, the range and active seasons for the mosquitoes that carry dengue have expanded.
The disease is known colloquially as “breakbone fever,” as extreme joint and muscle pain are the telltale symptoms, usually accompanied by headache and fever. While half of people who contract dengue fever experience no symptoms at all, about one percent die. Dengue hemorrhagic fever is the most dangerous form of the disease which can lead to organ failure and death. There is no treatment or vaccine for dengue. The World Health Organization estimates anywhere from 50 million to 100 million people contract the
disease globally every year.
Part of the global warming trend mean that Florida, Texas are developing cases Florida experience the first outbreak in the continental U.S. in 2009-2010.
In 2009-2010, Florida experienced the first dengue outbreak in the continental U.S. since the end of World War II. Last summer, there were 21 cases of denque in Florida. While California has not reported cases yet, mosquitoes carrying the virus have been found there.
With longer incubating seasons, other mosquito born diseases such as west nile virus and chikungunya are also spreading.
Wikipedea says this about Dengue fever:
Dengue fever (UK ˈdɛŋɡeɪ or US ˈdɛŋɡiː), also known as breakbone fever, is a mosquito-borne tropical disease caused by the dengue virus. Symptoms include fever, headache, muscle and joint pains, and a characteristic skin rash that is similar to measles. In a small proportion of cases the disease develops into the life-threatening dengue hemorrhagic fever, resulting in bleeding, low levels of blood platelets and blood plasma leakage, or into dengue shock syndrome, where dangerously low blood pressure occurs.
Yikes, one more thing to worry about. G and I are moving to Florida next month and are planning to pay the highest strength DEET by the gallon.
Please notice this is one of the hidden "external costs" of burning coal that is not included in the cost and price. So if you ever hear anyone say "coal is the least expensive way of generating electricity, please remind them that unless the comparison includes estimates of external costs, like the health impact of ash pits, and the consequences if global warming as we see hear, they are only talking about the short-term out-of-pocket costs the utility pays.
We will not know the total real costs for some time because many of them are are delayed and show up in other parts of the system, where they are left for others "holding the bag," to pay. Coal burning utilities are benefiting from, consuming, destroying, and drawing down public assets and imposing costs on other that are real.