Orange County utilizing tech to target dengue as 2 new cases emerge

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The Florida Department of Health and Orange County Mosquito Control confirmed two additional cases of locally acquired dengue fever in Apopka on Friday, causing the Mosquito-borne Illness Alert for dengue to be issued.

“Before we would always tell people, under West Nile or Eastern equine encephalitis virus advisories, we would tell people be careful during dusk and dawn, avoid mosquitoes at night. Now, we're telling people to avoid mosquito bites at all times because of Aedes albopictus transmits dengue. It's primarily active during the daytime," Orange County Mosquito Control Manager Steve Harrison said.

To address these mosquito-borne illnesses, Orange County Mosquito Control recently began using new on-site testing technology designed to help identify and mitigate illnesses more quickly.

The agency is using PCR technology to identify genetic material of viruses known to be carried by mosquitos, and officials shared that this process allows Orange County Mosquito Control staff to determine if mosquitoes collected through their surveillance program are carrying any illnesses. The technology allows the agency to test mosquito samples in its own lab for viruses such as West Nile virus, Zika virus, dengue and others.

“There is a company that specializes in PCR detection equipment specifically for mosquitoes. It is the same technology that other labs use to test people's blood and other things for viruses and people. We primarily look at mosquitoes," Harrison said. "That's all we're looking at. We process mosquitoes, and we're able to test them and get results very quickly.”

In the past, Orange County Mosquito Control said suspected virus samples had to be sent to an outside lab for testing.

"It could be days to a week before we got results. Now we can get results much faster, within a day," Harrison said. "Once we've collected mosquitoes, we process on that morning. We can have results by that afternoon.

“It's an initial upfront cost, but over time, the overall cost per sample will be less than having to send it out."

The change could allow the county to get same-day results, helping crews respond more quickly if viruses are detected in local mosquito populations, officials said.

The Florida Department of Health has reported more than 40 locally acquired dengue cases in Florida this month. As of Friday, three reported dengue cases have been found in Orange County.

Health officials recommend residents take steps to reduce mosquito bites, including wearing long sleeves and pants, using bug spray and dumping out standing water. The Florida Department of Health said mosquitoes can multiply quickly in standing water.