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Speaker 1: We know that there has Unfortunately, a public health alerts

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Speaker 1: had to be issued after a woman died from the

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Speaker 1: mosquito born disease in the top end, and she passed

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Speaker 1: away last week, as I understand it, from Murray Valley

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Speaker 1: in cephalitis, which she most likely contracted in Darwin. Now

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Speaker 1: joining me on the line to tell us more about

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Speaker 1: the situation and how to protect yourself is the director

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Speaker 1: for the Center for Disease Controlled, doctor Vicki Krass. Good

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Speaker 1: morning to you. Vicki, good morning, Thanks so much for

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Speaker 1: your time this morning. Firstly, what is Murray Valley encephalitis.

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Speaker 2: Well, we have to say it is a rare disease,

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Speaker 2: but it's a disease that's caused by a virus that's

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Speaker 2: carried by mosquito. So it's a mosquito borne disease and

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Speaker 2: one to avoid because it can be very serious. It

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Speaker 2: can lead to you know, comicco state and even to death.

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Speaker 2: So this is a disease to avoid, and to avoid

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Speaker 2: it you have to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes.

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Speaker 1: And Vicky, as should point it out, it's incredibly serious.

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Speaker 1: It's incredibly serious. By the sounds of things, I understand

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Speaker 1: that last week there was a woman who had passed

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Speaker 1: away in down as a result of MV.

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Speaker 2: That's correct. It does result in death and up to

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Speaker 2: thirty percent of the cases, so it is something to

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Speaker 2: avoid and to be taken seriously. It is a disease

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Speaker 2: that presents with affecting your brain and your nervous system,

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Speaker 2: so you present usually with a high fever and with headache.

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Speaker 2: That can lead to confusion and in its severe forms

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Speaker 2: if it progresses, you know, leading as I said, to

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Speaker 2: a coma and in up to thirty percent death. So

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Speaker 2: you know that's the presentation. That's why we want people

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Speaker 2: to be aware and if you are going to be

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Speaker 2: out in the timeframes when mosquitoes most active, to make

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Speaker 2: sure that you cover up, that you use insect repellent,

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Speaker 2: that you keep children out away from mosquitoes in general,

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Speaker 2: and protect them as well. But during this time period

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Speaker 2: which is basically February to June, when we know the

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Speaker 2: mosquitoes are most active, and particularly if you're around wetlands

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Speaker 2: or creeks, those are the areas to be concerned about

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Speaker 2: and to make sure you have adequate protection.

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Speaker 1: Nicky, is it treatable if it's caught early enough.

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Speaker 2: It's only treatable in the sense that you manage the symptoms,

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Speaker 2: so there's no specific treatment or no anti virals. There

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Speaker 2: are no there is not a vaccine for MVE. So

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Speaker 2: really the message here is try to avoid being bitten

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Speaker 2: and so not to be out you know during that

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Speaker 2: hour of dusk and dawn and overnight.

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Speaker 1: Has there been any other cases in recent weeks, There

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Speaker 1: haven't been fatal.

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Speaker 2: No. As I said, it is a rare disease. And

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Speaker 2: so the last disease that we have for the NT

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Speaker 2: was in twenty twenty one and that was actually a

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Speaker 2: visitor who came here and then went back to to

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Speaker 2: New South Wales, I believe, and that person did live.

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Speaker 2: And before that we did have we have had cases.

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Speaker 2: I think before that was in twenty eighteen, So you

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Speaker 2: know we have either no cases or maybe one or

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Speaker 2: two cases a year. But we in the past, for instance,

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Speaker 2: twenty years when we've had maybe thirteen cases, we had

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Speaker 2: five five deaths. And if we go back from when

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Speaker 2: we started collecting on this disease, which is almost fifty

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Speaker 2: years ago, we've had nine deaths. So you know, not common,

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Speaker 2: but certainly there is that possibility and so you know,

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Speaker 2: learn to protect yourself and your children from being protected

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Speaker 2: from mosquito.

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Speaker 1: Bibes VICKI, what is the base way to do that?

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Speaker 1: I know, obviously covering up h that's.

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Speaker 2: Right, and also using insect repellents that either contain deep

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Speaker 2: or picarrotin or oil of eucalyptus. These are three products

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Speaker 2: that are effective against mosquitoes. You know, wearing the light

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Speaker 2: colored clothing and that cover you, and covering your ankles,

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Speaker 2: and making sure your children are covered because of course

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Speaker 2: you know they need your protection. So and then as

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Speaker 2: we have been saying that that time and anyone who's

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Speaker 2: been now that at dusk or at dawn, you know

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Speaker 2: that those are the times when mosquitoes are most active.

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Speaker 2: Making sure, you know, check out your home, make sure

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Speaker 2: your screens are in good order and intact if you're

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Speaker 2: going camping, make sure you have the capacity there to

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Speaker 2: be sleeping free from mosquitoes. Uh and using coiled and

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Speaker 2: other mechanisms to like clothing to to make sure you're covered. Covickie,

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Speaker 2: you and I have spo before.

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Speaker 1: I'm pretty sure about Japanese and cephal artists as well.

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Speaker 1: How are things going on that front?

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Speaker 2: Yes, so this is another mosquito born disease that we

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Speaker 2: have only of recent times come to feel is becoming

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Speaker 2: endemic in the Northern territory. So we've had three cases.

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Speaker 2: The first case was from h a Tv Island area

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Speaker 2: back in February of twenty twenty one, and that sadly

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Speaker 2: was a fatal case. And we have had two cases

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Speaker 2: since then last year in the May June time period,

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Speaker 2: so we have had three cases. It's another disease. It

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Speaker 2: adds to that mosquito born disease category and another reason

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Speaker 2: you know, to predict yourself from mosquitoes. I will say

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Speaker 2: with the MVE that if people have been listening to

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Speaker 2: reports from New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia, they're

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Speaker 2: reporting the finding of the virus in their mosquitoes almost

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Speaker 2: every day. You know, they'll report some from here, some

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Speaker 2: from there, but they have not reported any cases yet.

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Speaker 2: So this is the first case really of this sort

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Speaker 2: of season of MVE in the country. And so it's

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Speaker 2: you know, again it's not that unexpected because we say

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Speaker 2: we have endemic disease here. You know, any year we

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Speaker 2: might get one, and so we just want to make

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Speaker 2: everybody aware that if you're coming from down South or

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Speaker 2: you're visiting here to be aware of this disease and

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Speaker 2: know how to protect yourself.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, make sure you cover up and as you said,

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Speaker 1: make sure that you've got that insect repellent on Vicky.

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Speaker 1: We always appreciate your time. Thank you so very much

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Speaker 1: for having a chat with us this morning.

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Speaker 2: You're very welcome.

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Speaker 1: Thank you,