231430 Dengue Fever in the Texas-Mexico Border Region

Tuesday, November 9, 2010 : 10:50 AM - 11:10 AM

Mary Hayden, PhD , Research Applications Laboratory, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO
A dengue-2 epidemic causing dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) occurred in the contiguous border cities of Matamoros, Tamaulipas (Mexico), and Brownsville, TX, in 2005. A household-based epidemiologic survey was conducted to determine the incidence and seroprevalence of dengue infection among Matamoros and Brownsville residents and to identify risk factors associated with infection. The estimated prevalence of past dengue infection was 77% and 39% among Matamoros and Brownsville participants, respectively. The Breteau index was 28 in Matamoros and 16 in Brownsville, reflecting an abundant winter population of Aedes mosquitoes. Discarded waste tires and buckets were the two largest categories of infested containers found in both cities. Underlying vulnerabilities that place residents at risk for dengue exist in the border region and may be exacerbated by macroscale stressors such as a global economic downturn and a changing climate.

Learning Areas:
Environmental health sciences

Learning Objectives:
Participants will be able to: 1. Describe determinants of dengue fever transmission at the US-MX border. 2. Describe differential vulnerability to dengue fever in both Brownsville, TX and Matamoros, MX. 3. Identify myriad factors in the transmission of dengue fever.

Keywords: Climate Change, Infectious Diseases

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a research scientist working on connections among weather, climate and health.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.