How to prevent common tropical diseases during the rainy season

The rains bring relief from the heat, and they bring a predictable rise in illness. Standing water breeds mosquitoes, run-off contaminates wells and boreholes, and rodents move closer to homes in search of dry shelter. Almost all of it is preventable.

Malaria

Malaria remains the most common reason families in Ekiti State come to hospital during and after the rains. It spreads through the bite of an infected female Anopheles mosquito, which breeds in stagnant water — and after heavy rain, stagnant water is everywhere.

What actually works

• Sleep under a treated net every night. This is the single most effective household measure, and it protects children and pregnant women most of all.
• Empty standing water weekly. Old tyres, buckets, tins, blocked gutters, discarded sachets and plant pot bases are all breeding sites. Mosquitoes need only a small amount of still water and about a week to complete a cycle.
• Clear gutters and drainage around the compound so water moves rather than settles.
• Use screens on windows and doors where you can, and repair torn ones.

If fever develops, get a test before taking treatment. Not every fever is malaria, and treating the wrong illness delays the right treatment. We can test and give you an answer the same visit.

Typhoid fever

Typhoid spreads through food and water contaminated with human waste, which is why cases climb when run-off gets into shallow wells and unprotected water sources.

• Drink water you have boiled, filtered, or that comes from a source you trust. If in doubt, boil it.
• Wash hands with soap and clean water after using the toilet and before preparing or eating food.
• Be careful with food sold in the open, particularly salads, cut fruit and anything that has sat out and is served cold.
• Keep cooked food covered and reheat leftovers thoroughly.

Typhoid often presents as a fever that steps up over several days, with abdominal discomfort, headache and poor appetite. It is easily confused with malaria — another reason to be tested rather than to guess.

Cholera and other diarrhoeal illness

Cholera causes sudden, profuse watery diarrhoea, and the danger is dehydration rather than the infection itself. It can become life-threatening within hours, especially in a small child or an older adult.

Prevention is the same discipline as typhoid: safe water, soap, safe food, and proper disposal of waste.

Lassa fever

Lassa fever is spread by contact with food or household items contaminated by the urine or droppings of the multimammate rat, or by contact with the body fluids of an infected person. Cases rise when rodents come indoors.

• Store food, including grains and garri, in tightly covered containers.
• Do not dry food on the ground or in the open where rodents can reach it.
• Keep the compound clear of refuse, which attracts rodents.
• Block holes and gaps that let rodents into the house.
• Do not handle or eat rodents.

Early Lassa fever looks like many other febrile illnesses — fever, weakness, headache, sore throat, muscle pain. Tell the clinician if there has been rodent activity in your home or if you have cared for someone with an unexplained fever, because that history changes what we look for.

A simple household routine

Most rainy-season illness is stopped by four habits done consistently: sleep under a net, drink water you trust, wash hands with soap, and remove standing water and refuse from around the house every week.

If a fever lasts more than a day or two, or if there is vomiting, diarrhoea, confusion or difficulty breathing, come in. We are open twenty-four hours and can test on site.