A child has tragically died from a mosquito-borne disease in Australia with health authorities warning people to protect themselves against bites.
The youngster, who hasn’t been named, died in hospital last Saturday in the Big Rivers region south of Darwin after being bitten by a mosquito earlier this month and diagnosed with Murray Valley encephalitis.
The virus is rare but it also led to two other deaths so far this year which has left health officials worried.
A 70-year-old woman in the Northern Territory died in February while a month ago a child from Western Australia also succumbed to the virus.
It is most common in rural areas of Australia, especially Northern Territory, being endemic to the northern part of the country and Papua New Guinea.
While the virus is rare it can cause a serious brain infection and there is no effective treatment or vaccine.
It means that the best way for people to avoid the virus is through protection which is the warning that has been given from the Northern Territory Department of Health.
In Western Australia people have been told to take care in northern areas which is a risk hotspot since the Kimberley floods.
While the virus has also been detected in a mosquito in the west of New South Wales following heavy rain.
People can protect themselves by wearing long trousers and shirts especially at dawn and dusk, as well as using insect repellent.
The Northern Territory health authority stated: "Murray Valley encephalitis (MVE) is an uncommon but potentially fatal disease that occurs after being bitten by a mosquito carrying the MVE virus. It is the most serious mosquito-borne disease that occurs in the Northern Territory (NT)."
It said the symptoms usually appear five to 28 days after being bitten by an infected mosquito.
Adding: "The early symptoms include headache, fever, nausea and vomiting, and muscle aches, which can progress to drowsiness, confusion, seizures or fits (especially in young children) and in severe cases delirium and coma."
Nina Kurucz of NT Health's medical entomology reportedly told NT News: "This year for some reason there's more MVE virus in the environment (…) but mosquito numbers haven't been any higher, they have been rather low."
She continued: "People who haven't been exposed or live in an area where the virus is endemic are more vulnerable, for example young kids.
"There is still a risk until all water bodies dry up, so we are letting people know that the virus is out there and can be fatal, and has been fatal in some cases."
