A MOSQUITO "BITE."

North Otago Times, 3 September 1910, Page 3 (Supplement)

A MOSQUITO "BITE."

WHAT TO DO AFTER THE BITE,

A word of* information, based on

the researches of Dr. A. H. Doty, may save a deal of.suffering and disfigurement when the time comes. For instance, it is very unfortunate' that people so often scratch a mosquito bite, Don't do it; nothing is to he gained by scratching, and the chances are that you do,more harm when you scratch than the mosquito does by biting. Scratching is absolutely useless.

When a mosquito'bites a person it injects something which is irritating, a kind of acid. In some cases the sting is more' perceptible than in others, which is probably due to the susceptibility of some people being greater than that of others. To relieve the sting of a mosquito bite use an alkaline substance.

There are several alkalies that may be used with effect; ammonia is very common. II one should happen to be in a field when bitten, nothing else being available, a little moistened fresh soil applied to the bitten part will act as an alkali, The same is generally true with regard to the bites of bees and. other insects; they require an alkali to neutralise them.

Oh the other hand, if you scratch a mosquito bite, you denude the surface, thus making a direct opening for germs. The very finger nails with which you scratch could, if- not clean infect the bite. The danger that may result from scratching a bite was clearly shown quite recently. The case was cited of a boy who scratched a mosquito bite on the left cheek with his finger nails, and a few days later he died of blood poisoning.' within a few hours after he scratched the bite the flesh began to swell. It seems that the infection could not be checked, and that the boy suffered considerably before he died.

Ordinarily a mosquito bite is only a transient thing. The sting soon passes away. : The susceptibility : of different persons to bites is peculiar. Some peoplo will instinctively stay away from mosquito-infested areas. Again, it is quite' true that there is to a certain extent immunity, this being especially true among old inhabitants in mosquito districts. Dr. Doty recalls the case of one man who when he first came to a mosquito district, spent a day in the woods. He was bitten from head to foot, and it caused him to bo ill for several days. After he got well he did not mind mosquito bites at all. There is something in this, it is really an immunity. People must not have a false sense of security, however. It does not follow because you have applied .an alkali on the mosquito bite that you are safe from malaria; This is not so. If a mosquito when it bites you is in a state that can infect you with malarial fever you cannot escape. This is because the malarial organism when injected by the mosquito into the human being is immediately introduced into the circulation, and malarial fever follows. Probably no disease has caused more widespread suffering and loss of life than malarial fever. The knowledge that we now possess regarding the medium of infection has placed in our hands means which if properly employed will prevent, or bring properly under control, outbreaks of this disease, and it is safe to say that the ravages which have been caused in the past need never occur again.

It has been proved conclusively, that malaria is transmitted by a variety of mosquito known as the "anopheles," and, so far as is known at the present time, in no other way. The old theory that malaria is caused by miasma or poisonous emanations from swamps and low-lying districts, or by bad air, aB the name malaria implies, has secured so firm a hold, not only on the laity but on the medical profession," that it has been abandoned reluctantly, and thenV are to-day some observers who, while admitting that the mosquito is a medium of infection, believe that there are -other means by which malaria is transmitted, Unfortunately for mankind the "anopheles" is so widespread that malaria is widely distributed throughout the world. The "anopheles" is .as harmless asany other mosquito until after it has become infected by biting persons suffering from malarial fever, even after this takes place it cannot immediately act as a medium of infection, as there must be au interval for the development of the malarial organism in the body of the mosquito before the disease can be transmitted to the human being. This in the "anopheles" takes about one; week.-"Popular Science Siftings." "