Insecticide treatment of cattle to kill sand flies and combat leishmaniasis.

A research published in the PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases shows that spraying insecticides on the cattle will prevent the incidence of visceral leishmaniasis as the causative sand flies will be destroyed . An estimated 500,000 human infections and 50,000 deaths annually, visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is the second most prevalent parasitic killer, after malaria. Leishmania parasites are transmitted through the bite of phlebotomine sand flies. Combating the insects by treating cattle with fipronil, will substantially reduce VL in areas where people and cattle live in close proximity. Fipronil is an insecticide with a long half-life. The insecticide remains in the system of animals for several weeks to several months, dependening on the concentration administered. Fipronil does not have any adverse effect onb mammals at low concentrations, but when fed to cattle at low concentrations in drug form, can kill adult blood-feeding sand flies and sand fly larvae that feed on the cattle feces. The use of Fipronil to control sand flies will last for several months following a single treatment,coupled with the practice of indoor spraying. Female sand flies primarily bite humans and cattle especially at night, and after sand fly eggs hatch, the larvae feed on organic matter, the most abundant source being cow patties. The means of control of sand flies involves indoor residual spraying with pyrethroid insecticides, but exposure is normally possible in rural dwellers that sleep outside especially during the hot months.