La Crosse vector-control manager briefs Vernon County Board of Health on tick- and mosquito-borne disease trends

Dave Geske, vector control manager with the La Crosse County Health Department, briefed the Vernon County Board of Health on March 10 about 2015 regional activity of tick- and mosquito-borne illnesses and the county’s vector-control work.

Geske said the majority of recent human and animal cases involved Lyme disease, anaplasmosis, ehrlichioses and babesiosis, all carried by the deer tick. He told the board that “Borrelia mayonii has been newly isolated in our region and is similar to Lyme disease but with a diffuse rash and greater nausea and vomiting.”

The presentation outlined the program’s three core strategies: surveillance of vectors, habitat control at likely breeding sites and public education. Geske described common monitoring sites—tires, buckets, boats, traps, storm-water retention ponds, ditches and other standing-water areas—and said the program focuses on controlling mosquitos while aquatic life stages remain present and on encouraging residents to clean or properly manage artificial container sites.

Geske emphasized personal prevention measures when outdoors, including staying on paths and avoiding vegetation where ticks are most likely to attach. He also warned of the potential cost and human toll of arboviral illnesses, saying “the cost of one average clinical case of La Crosse Viral Encephalitis can represent the cost of a decade of arboviral control programming.”

Board members thanked Geske for the report and expressed support for continued regional cooperation on vector control. The presentation concluded with the board noting the public-health importance of ongoing surveillance and preventive outreach in Vernon County.