LASSA FEVER AWARENESS

Recently there has been cases of lassa fever in Nigeria with some reported deaths.So,
WHAT IS LASSA FEVER?
Lassa Fever is a viral illness that typically occurs in West Africa.It is a type of viral hemorrhagic Fever caused by the Lassa virus.The illness was named after a village in northern Nigeria where the first case was recorded in 1969 following the death of two nurses.

WHAT IS THE CAUSE OF LASSA FEVER AND HOW DOES IT SPREAD?
Lassa virus is transmitted to human body through handling of rats, consumption or inhalation of rat urine or feces.The virus can spread between people through direct contact with the  body fluids of  a person infected with lassa fever as well as contaminated bedding and clothing. The presence of virus in the blood is known to peak four to nine days after symptoms begin.It occurs in all ages and sexes and  mainly with people living in a dirty areas where rats are usually found especially in communities with poor sanitation living conditions.

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF LASSA FEVER?
The symptoms start slowly and gradually with signs of fever,Cough,general weakness,Swollen
airways.After a few days,headache,sore throat,muscle pain chest pain,vomiting and diarrhea ,abdominal pain may follow.In some cases bleeding from the mouth,nose vagina etc.Death usually occurs within 14 days of manifestation.

WHAT TO DO IF SOMEONE IS INFECTED WITH LASSA FEVER
Once you noticed that someone has been infected with lassa fever, the following steps should be taken, avoid contact the person,advise the person to take enough water,seek medical advise.

PREVENTION OF LASSA FEVER
The major way to prevent lassa fever is to promote community hygiene.
 Primary transmission of the Lassa virus from its host to humans can be prevented by avoiding contact with  rodents, especially in the geographic regions where outbreaks occur.Encourage hand washing at regular basis,storing grains and other food stuffs in a rodent proof containers,cooking all foods thoroughly,disposing of garbage far from the home,maintaining clean house holds,keeping cats as domestic pets can also help in keeping away rats.
Finally,regular fumigation from a professional pest controller.

From Chidi Odileke (Somplus Facilities and Environmental Services)

PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS OF PESTICIDE MISMANAGEMENT

With the recent crash in global oil price, which has resulted to economic meltdown, most countries especially African countries that were depending on crude oil export are returning back to agricultural based economy and with the encouragements and supports from various governments, a lot of  people are moving into this sector and this  has subsequently and rapidly raise  the application of pesticide  to control the incidences of pests and disease outbreaks.

              Though application of the pesticide controls the pest problems to some extent in the long term it brings lots of problems like pest resistance, minor pest outbreak and soil, water contamination. Increasing the use of pesticide in the field crop is not the ultimate solution, as it comes with  its own negative effects hence the need to create farmers awareness  about specific pesticide use, their safe handling and disposal procedure, direction of use etc

             Most of the farmers take pesticide as medicine that is used to cure crops from diseases and pests. But actually it is the toxic materials that either kill or deteriorate the growth of the pests increasing the yield of crops.

 Some of the pesticides have comparatively high residual effect which consequently creates health hazards due to the accumulation of the pesticide residue in different tropic levels of the eco-system. They persist for a long time in the environment and cause environment problems.

          Most farmers  lack the knowledge   about the proper use of the pesticide and at the same time would not like to  employ a professional pest controller rather they would prefer ‘ do it yourself’ system. This is not good. In addition to this,, some of the  pesticide resellers or shopkeepers and distributors  do not  have enough knowledge on safe use of pesticides and storage management, they also lack knowledge on specific pesticide that are made for specific pest and disease, effective direction of usage ,proper handling and storage of pesticide ,proper transportation and sound disposal methods and cannot offer good advice on them to the farmers since most of them are bought over the canter.

IMPLICATIONS OF PESTICIDE MISMANAGEMENT

               A research has shown that “Fetuses, infants, growing children, pregnant and nursing mothers, and women of childbearing age are most at risk from adverse health outcomes from exposure to pesticides.  Children are more at risk than adults because children eat more relative to their body weight than adults eat.” Our farmers and consumers need to know good agriculture practices (GAP) and the government should focus to strengthen its extension services to the community level.There have been  a lot of cases of people being hospitalised after consuming agricultural products.

SOLUTIONS 

Use of the indigenous knowledge and practices like using ash, neem powder, etc as practice in some countries like Nepal  must be promoted with possible scientific manipulation to strengthen the efficacy of indigenous practices. Use of bio-pesticide and other environmental friendly means are alternatives. For example, washing vegetables with water for one minute at room temperature results in approximately 40 to 90% reduction of the levels of the pesticides originally detected on the produce.

            Similarly, washing of the vegetables and fruits three times reduces the residue by 60-70% and dipping of agricultural produce in vinegar or salt for 15 minutes before cooking followed by thorough washing can reduce the residue by 70-80%. These types of practices must be communicated to the entire consumers via the social media. Also per boiling of  agricultural products  like rice and beans etc and thorough washing  is also advisable
Farmers should engage the service of a professional pest controller rather than do it yourself style.

              During fumigation, direct liquid spray of chemicals on agricultural products like rice, beans  maize etc should be avoided
Killing and consuming  of wild animals(bush meat as known in some countries) with chemically induced bait should be seriously discouraged

From Chidi Odileke
GM Somplus Environmental and Facilities Maintenance Services

MY ADVISE ON BED BUGS PREVENTION

• After coming home from a trip some infestations can be prevented by washing any clothing or bedding used on the trip. Do this immediately.
• If you buy used furniture, inspect all the items before bringing them into your residence.
• Never bring discarded bed frames, mattresses, box springs, or upholstered furniture into your home.
• Advice leaders and management of any gathering points like churches mosques schools etc of the need for regular fumigation because of the migratory nature of bed bugs
• Do not wait until you notice bed bug in your home before you fumigate

Tips on How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs

PREVENTION

Prevention is the best way to get rid of bed bugs and the best way to prevent is to avoid junks.Get rid of  all those things that create conducive environment for them, unused clothes, waste papers, nylon bags, old funitures,electronics  soft toys, blankets, etc. All these things attract and give them comfortable zone to reproduce.

Dismantle furniture frames if possible And Launder Infested Garments / Linens Dismantling bed and other furniture frames in infested areas typically exposes bed bug hiding sites. Having access to these areas during cleaning is important. If some of the furniture are made with fabrics, remove the fabrics to prepare for spraying

Remove drawers from desks and dressers since bed bugs like to hide in these areas. Turn furniture over to inspect and clean all hiding spots. All furniture should be pulled away from the walls.   

Another step is to launder all garments and bed linens in hot water (120 degrees Fahrenheit minimum). If washing is not available, heating the garments or bed linens for several minutes in clothes dryer may work.

Clean the Area

Scrub infested surfaces with a stiff brush to dislodge eggs. Vacuum the room extensively. Use a vacuum hose attachment to thoroughly vacuum cracks and crevices on furniture and along baseboards on the walls. Vacuum along baseboards, furniture, bed stands, rails, headboards, foot boards, bed seams, tufts, buttons, edges of the bedding, as well as the edges of the carpets (particularly along the tack strips). A good vacuum cleaning job may remove particles from cracks and crevices to encourage greater insecticide penetration. Bed bugs cling tightly to surfaces, so it is best to vacuum by scraping the end of the vacuum attachment over the infested areas to pull out the bed bugs. Caution: It is not good to use a bristle attachment, because you may transfer bed bugs to other areas since they cling to the brush. Dispose of vacuum cleaner bags after you are finished in an outdoor trashcan.

Caulk and Seal

Caulk and seal all holes where pipes and wires penetrate walls and floor, and fill cracks around baseboards and molding to further reduce harbouring areas. Then fumigate.

BED BUG ERADICATION THROUGH FUMIGATION

There are so many ways to eradicate pests but the major one is through fumigation. So what is fumigation?

Fumigation is simply a procedure by which a deadly chemical is discharged into enclosed area to eliminate infestation of pests.The kind of pests you have in your home determines the kind of  approach to apply. Some pests die by inhaling the chemicals as in the case of mosquitoes and African traditional cockroaches (those giant cockroaches you find around toilet pits), some by body contact, they only die when they   get in contact with the chemicals, in this category are bed bug and German roaches (the tiny roaches you find in your kitchenette) while some pests like rats die by consuming the chemicals through baits.

                                  SPRAYING

As said earlier, the best way to eradicate bed bug is by spraying of chemical

• Spray around and under the bed and along the baseboards near the bed. After removing the drawers from the furniture, the inside of the cabinetry should be sprayed as well as the bottom and sides of the drawers. Do not treat the inside of the drawers. If needed the clothes in the drawers should be removed and laundered.
• Spray around the inside of closets, door frames and doors.
• Spray molding at the top and bottom of the room. Spray around windows.
• Spray seams of drawers, both top and bottom. Spray dressers from below. Spray where dressers touch the floor.
• Spray where the bed touches the floor, spray chairs and underneath chairs.
• Spray all baseboards, loose plaster, behind bed frames and headboards, beneath bed Look carefully at the folds and seams of the mattress, the headboard, foot board (if present), box spring/support platform, frame, etc for bedbugs and treat these areas.

.

NOTE: Spraying for bed bug requires deep wet spraying and after about two weeks,there should be a repetition because  we expect that the eggs would have been hatched and a new generation of bed bugs springing up and with the repetition exercise, this new generation would have been nipped in the bud.

From Chidi ( Somplus Ltd)