1,200% more cases in one year in France, how to protect yourself from the tiger mosquito?

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A thousand cases of dengue fever were detected in France in the first quarter of 2023, after being infected mainly in the Antilles. Raising fears of a risk of spread in metropolitan territory. In Center-Val de Loire, the tiger mosquito now threatens a third of the population.

It was less than a year ago. July 2023, France 3 explained to you that “the colonization of the tiger mosquito is accelerating in Center-Val de Loire“. We explained to you that the insect had settled permanently in Tours, Orléans, Châteauroux and Bourges.

This April 30, new alert, launched by the regional health agency (ARS) of Centre-Val de Loire. By press release, the agency calls for “reinforced vigilance and recalls good practices to fight against the tiger mosquito“.

The conclusion is clear : “the year 2023 was marked by a notable increase in the presence of the tiger mosquito in the Centre-Val de Loire region“. The dipteran has still not colonized Eure-et-Loir, but it has accentuated its footprint where the tip of its trunk was already pointing. From now on, a third (32.9%) of the region’s inhabitants reside in a town colonized – in whole or in part – by the tiger mosquito.

Currently, the period of activity of the tiger mosquito is limited, in France excluding overseas territories, to the period from May to November. But she couldlie down in the future“, because of global warming.

The risk is now to see an increase in cases of dengue, chikungunya or Zika on French territory, after contamination on site from imported cases. However, imported cases are skyrocketing: in 2024, 1,038 cases were declared in France between January 1 and March 26. In 2023, over the same period, there were… 76. An increase of more than 1,200%.

In the vast majority of cases, infected people “were returning from Martinique or Guadeloupe, where an epidemic has been ongoing since mid-2023“Of these thousand cases, more than a hundred have been identified in Centre-Val de Loire.

So, how can we fight against the tiger mosquito, which increasingly feels at home on the European continent? The Mosquito Reporting site thus allows a “vector control” by the authorities. Basically, the massive use of insecticide in an infested area, the elimination of stagnant water where mosquitoes lay eggs, the setting of traps… But also public awareness in the areas concerned , to publicize good practices against the insect.

First thing to do, act on your direct environment:

• remove all objects abandoned in gardens, parks or on terraces which can serve as containers,
• empty saucers, vases, buckets, etc. once a week.
• fill the saucers of the flower pots with sand or a sponge which, once wet, allows watering,
• check the proper flow of rainwater (gutters, roof terraces, etc.),
• maintain green spaces: prune, clear brush.

To protect yourself, you can also invest in mosquito nets (and impregnate them with insecticides). It is also possible to apply repellent products to the skin or clothing. ANSES recommends wearing loose, covering clothing.

Travelers are invited to find out about the diseases circulating in the target country or region, to protect themselves as best they can on site, and to continue to do so upon their return for three weeks to avoid transmitting any disease linked to the tiger mosquito. The first affected could be your loved ones: the tiger mosquito lives in a zone of 150 meters. It is born, lives and bites in your neighborhood.

In the event of symptoms (joint or muscle pain, headaches, rash, conjunctivitis with or without fever, etc.), consult a doctor quickly, specifying the territory from which you are returning and your return date. And, above all, avoid getting bitten again at all costs. In 2023, no mosquito control operation has been carried out in Centre-Val de Loire (around fifty in France), and no indigenous case of dengue fever has been detected there.