8
The Use of Biodegradable Pesticides
in Public Health Entomology
Gene R. DeFoliart
8. 1. INTRODUCTION
In his presidential address to the American Society of Tropical Medicine and
Hygiene, w. C. Reeves (1972) asked: "Can the war to contain infectious diseases
be lost?" That remains a good question today. One must realize how fragile our
ability is to control arthropod-borne disease. After malaria was reduced in India
from 750 million cases and 750,000 deaths per year prior to 1953 (Wattal, 1971)
to only 100,000 cases per year during the mid-1960s, we have witnessed a
resurgence to 5 million cases in 1976 and to 10 million cases during the first 9
months of 1977 (Akhtar and Learmonth, 1977). In India, 122 million people
live at risk of filariasis (Wattal, 1971). Outbreaks of dengue and chikungunya
viruses occur repeatedly, and less than a year ago an epidemic of Japanese
encephalitis resulted in 5359 confirmed and clinically suspected cases and 1869
deaths (U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, 1978).
In the United States, a temperate zone country, vector-borne problems pale
in comparison to those of India. Nevertheless, we have more than 1000 cases
of Rocky Mountain spotted fever annually, and the number is increasing. Only
4 years ago we experienced the greatest epidemic of mosquito-borne human
encephalitis in the U.S. since the 1930s, with more than 2000 cases of St. Louis
encephalitis (U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, 1976). Near
Gene R. DeFoliart • Department of Entomology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin
53706
193
The Use of Biodegradable Pesticides
in Public Health Entomology
Gene R. DeFoliart
8. 1. INTRODUCTION
In his presidential address to the American Society of Tropical Medicine and
Hygiene, w. C. Reeves (1972) asked: "Can the war to contain infectious diseases
be lost?" That remains a good question today. One must realize how fragile our
ability is to control arthropod-borne disease. After malaria was reduced in India
from 750 million cases and 750,000 deaths per year prior to 1953 (Wattal, 1971)
to only 100,000 cases per year during the mid-1960s, we have witnessed a
resurgence to 5 million cases in 1976 and to 10 million cases during the first 9
months of 1977 (Akhtar and Learmonth, 1977). In India, 122 million people
live at risk of filariasis (Wattal, 1971). Outbreaks of dengue and chikungunya
viruses occur repeatedly, and less than a year ago an epidemic of Japanese
encephalitis resulted in 5359 confirmed and clinically suspected cases and 1869
deaths (U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, 1978).
In the United States, a temperate zone country, vector-borne problems pale
in comparison to those of India. Nevertheless, we have more than 1000 cases
of Rocky Mountain spotted fever annually, and the number is increasing. Only
4 years ago we experienced the greatest epidemic of mosquito-borne human
encephalitis in the U.S. since the 1930s, with more than 2000 cases of St. Louis
encephalitis (U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, 1976). Near
Gene R. DeFoliart • Department of Entomology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin
53706
193