Prevention is key in stopping Triple-E

Maine CDC Director Dr. Sheila Pinette

The chief of Maine’s Center for Disease Control said on Monday to protect yourself from Eastern Equine Encephalitis it’s important to not only apply DEET or lemon eucalyptus to your skin but also use permethrin on your clothing.  

Maine CDC Director Dr. Sheila Pinette said it’s also best to stay indoors during dusk and dawn and to wear clothes that fully cover your body.

She said this year’s Triple-E presence is a little heavier and earlier than last year and cautioned we need a couple of hard frosts and persistent below-freezing temperatures before we’re out of the woods.

For the first time this year a mosquito in Lebanon tested positive for Eastern Equine Encephalitis on Thursday, but positive tests had come back from Alfred as early as July 19, she said. York had its first positive test on Aug. 20

 “They’re more active this year and we’ve had more positive tests at an earlier time,” Pinette said, adding the worst time is always September. 

She said Massachusetts was getting positive test results in June, so no one was surprised when the positive tests soon followed to Northern New England.

Pinette said the increased presence can be blamed on a rainy June and a hot July.

“The rain creates them, and the heat brings them out,” she said.

Last week a test pool in Greenland, N.H., also turned up positive.

State health officials contacted Lebanon selectmen on Friday after which bulletins were sent out from the town website and the Rescue Department.

Pinette said the CDC is not trying to scare anyone; they just want everybody to be aware of the risks.

She said by avoiding being outdoors at peak mosquito hours, draining standing water around your yard and making sure screens are maintained and patched, you can do a lot to minimize your risk.

So can using permethrin.

According to the state CDC website: “permethrin products are intended for use on clothing, shoes, bed nets and camping gear (not directly to skin). One application of permethrin to clothing retains its effectiveness through several washings. Clothing should be retreated according to the label instructions. Some commercial products are available pretreated with permethrin.”

The same component at varying strengths is used to control head lice and crabs. Permethrin kills mosquitoes on contact, however, it should never be applied directly to the skin.

While Triple-E has been more prevalent this year, the less-deadly West Nile Virus has not been a factor thus far, Pinette said.

Triple-E in its most severe cases can be deadly, while West Nile is not nearly as lethal.

Triple-E turns up mostly along the coast, in marshes and swamps, while West Nile is found more in an urban setting, Pinette said.