Avoiding insect bites
Insects other than mosquitos
carry disease
All travellers need to take precautions even if they do not think they get bitten. Some travellers are more attractive to insects. Some react more to bites than others. Some are bitten but do not realise it. Avoiding insect bites helps prevent infection and reduce itching, allergies and skin infections.
Mosquitos can transmit many diseases - malaria, yellow fever, dengue, Japanese encephalitis, zika. Other insects (this includes arthropods –gnats and flies and arachnids – spiders, mites and ticks) bite and can also spread disease.
Bites and stings
Biting insects may inject substances into the skin to prevent blood clotting and open blood vessels. This can lead to reactions either locally at the site or over the whole body.
Anaphylaxis Bees, wasps or hornets inject venom into the skin which can be painful but for some cause a severe allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis. If you suffer anaphylaxis from stings or bites it is vital you consider measures to minimise risk with your travel health consultant before you go. Measures include wearing a safety alert bracelet, carrying an adequate supply of Epi-pens. Tip from the top - if you say go trekking in the jungle for a few days - don’t leave your Epi-pen behind just to make your kit lighter. Tell the people you are with about your anaphylaxis.
Ticks
Where Ticks live on grassy ground worldwide, attaching when humans walk through the grass. They crawl onto skin or clothes and move until they find a warm feeding area like under arms, scalp line or groin. Tick bites do not usually hurt but it is really important to remove the tick as soon as possible, to minimise the transfer of any diseases.
Check your skin at the end of the day especially after hiking in forests and grasslands. If appropriate, ask someone else to check the parts of your body you cannot see.
Tick bite avoidance Try to keep to paths and avoid long grass. Check regularly for ticks and remove any found. Wear light coloured long sleeves and trousers so ticks are more easily seen and tuck your socks in. Wear insect repellent on exposed skin day and night and impregnate clothes.
Removing ticks Remove with fine tipped tweezers or tick removers. Hold tick as close to the skin as possible and steadily pull up. Try not to squash or squeeze the body as this causes the tick to regurgitate their stomach contents and increase risk of infection. Once tick is gone, wash area with soap and water and apply antiseptic.
Vaccine for insect borne disease
Yellow fever - single vaccine in a lifetime, but not suitable for everyone
Japanese encephalitis – two vaccine doses separated by 4 weeks. Some travellers may have the vaccines just one week apart to cover for a trip. A booster at 12 months is recommended if ongoing risk.
Tick borne encephalitis – three vaccine doses. The second dose 1-3 months after first, third dose 5-12 months after 2nd dose. Booster every 3 years.
Malaria – Oral tablets (see Malaria information sheet)
Diseases with no vaccine
Mosquito - Dengue, Zika, chikungunya, West Nile virus plus others
Tick – Lyme disease, babesiosis, African tick bite fever, Crimean Congo haemorrhagic fever plus others
Flies – Leishmaniasis, Onchocerciasis and African trypanosomiasis.
Fleas – Plague and murine typhus.
Lice – Typhus
Chiggers mites – Scrub typhus
Reduviid bug – American trypanosomiasis
References and further information
https://travelhealthpro.org.uk/factsheet/38/insect-and-tick-bite-avoidance
https://www.fitfortravel.nhs.uk/advice/general-travel-health-advice/insect-bite-avoidance