Operation EXTINCD
(EXterminate those Terrorising INsects Causing Disease)

We are in the rainy season in the upcountry, and more rain means more disease. They say Malaria is confined to the southwest, but there are other insect-borne diseases to worry about. Among them is Dengue fever. According to WHO figures some 2500 million people, or two fifths of the world's population, are at risk from Dengue. Of the symptoms they write that "Older children and adults may have either a mild febrile syndrome or the classical incapacitating disease with abrupt onset and high fever, severe head ache, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pains, and rash". There are four different strains, and although the disease is seldom lethal, a dual infection with two strains may trigger Dengue haemorrhagic fever which is a more common cause of death. Again "The illness commonly begins with a sudden rise in temperature accompanied by facial flush and other non-specific constitutional symptoms of Dengue fever. (...) In severe cases, the patient's condition may suddenly deteriorate after a few days of fever; the temperature drops, followed by signs of circulatory failure, and the patient may rapidly go into a critical state of shock and die within 12-24 hours (...)".

Nice.

I have read about this stuff. In fact there was a medical student at Peradeniya who recently died of Dengue, although for some time her cause of death was a matter of uncertainty and there were speculations that a mysterious heart disease was spreading. Still, this is one of those things you never believe will happen to you. Then I talked to Lisa who was hospitalized with Dengue in India last year. A few days later I had a sudden onrush of fever myself.

I had been to campus in the day, and to town in the afternoon, as usual, but didn't feel good and decided to go home early. While watching TV I began feeling cold. Feeling cold in Sri Lanka is a novel experience, and I have to admit that I was enjoying it at first. But then I couldn't sleep becuase I was shivering uncontrollably, in spite of wearing a thick sweater, double blankets and having turned off the fan in a room that must have held about 25 degrees Celcius. My head felt as if it was filled with razorblades. I was sure I was smitten with Dengue and started considering the consequences for my fieldwork. When I finally fell asleep that night I had dreams of having to reinvent everything in this world because it was all crap. I had to start with language however, which was frustrating becuase I had to invent the words I was dreaming.

Fortunately, the fever, just barely having exceeded 39 degrees, subsided quickly and during the night I shed more and more clothing until I lay naked under a fan running at max speed.

So I didn't have Dengue after all. Not yet, anyway, and I intend for it to stay that way. Its not that I'm being eaten alive by mosquitos, but at any time I will have 10 - 20 bites. So I have taken some measures. Decent repellent is for some reason difficult to come by here, but coils and mosquito mats are everywhere. I have harvested. I also bought a bottle of poison, planning to pour it in our half-inside-half-outside pond, which I suspect to be a breeding ground for mossies. John stopped me, though. He insists fish is a better sollution, although the two he introduced to the pond 3 weeks ago died in less than 10 days - probably smitten with Dengue. John further objects to the smell of the coils. This is a mystery to me. In fact, to me the smell is like sweet incense, a sentimental reminder of happy Norwegian summerdays. But John is the boss and I'm at a loss. Anyone care to send me som Mygga?