How to avoid tsetse flies

Tsetse flies:

Insect repellent does not prevent tsetse fly bites, however using DEET-containing repellent on exposed skin and applying a permethrin spray (or solution) to clothing and gear will prevent other insect bites. Inspect vehicles for tsetse flies before entering since they are attracted to moving items.

The tsetse fly is attracted to bright colors, very dark colors, metallic fabric, particularly the colors blue and black.

Seek immediate medical attention if bitten by a tsetse fly (the bite is painful) and symptoms appear. If untreated, African Trypanosomiasis can lead to a coma and be fatal. Treatment includes taking antiparasitic drugs.

Control measures

The tsetse flies then eventually disappeared because of food shortage. These methods have largely been abandoned and today insecticide spraying is used along with traps and insecticide-impregnated targets. Traps and screens are an effective means of tsetse control.

No vaccine or medicine can prevent African sleeping sickness. But you can avoid being bitten by tsetse flies. Experts recommend the following: Wear protective clothing, such as long-sleeved shirts and pants.

Tsetse flies are found just in sub-Saharan Africa though only certain species transmit the disease.

Sleeping sickness is curable with medication but is fatal if left untreated.

African trypanosomiasis is a parasitic disease transmitted by the tsetse fly. It gets its nickname ‘sleeping sickness‘ because symptoms can include a disturbed sleep pattern.

Tsetse have large heads, distinctly separated eyes, and unusual antennae. The thorax is quite large, while the abdomen is wide rather than elongated and shorter than the wings. Tsetse have a distinct proboscis, a long thin structure attached to the bottom of the head and pointing forward.

Tsetse can fly at about 20 km/h (Gibson et al., 1991) and they are active for something like 30 minutes each day (Bursell & Taylor, 1980). So they could travel up to 10 km every day! However, they tend to make many short flights every day and these are not all in the same direction.

Trypanosomes infect a variety of hosts and cause various diseases, including the fatal human diseases sleeping sickness, caused by Trypanosoma brucei, and Chagas disease, caused by Trypanosoma cruzi.

1 : a serious disease that is prevalent in much of tropical Africa, is marked by fever, headache, lethargy, confusion, and sleep disturbances, and is caused by either of two trypanosomes (Trypanosoma brucei gambiense and T. b. rhodesiense) transmitted by tsetse flies.

African trypanosomiasis, also known as African sleeping sickness or simply sleeping sickness, is an insect-borne parasitic infection of humans and other animals. It is caused by the species Trypanosoma brucei.

Medical Definition of trypanosomiasis

: infection with or disease (as African sleeping sickness or Chagas disease) caused by flagellates of the genus Trypanosoma.

Trypanosomiasis or trypanosomosis is the name of several diseases in vertebrates caused by parasitic protozoan trypanosomes of the genus Trypanosoma. In humans this includes African trypanosomiasis and Chagas disease. A number of other diseases occur in other animals.

Fever, severe headaches, irritability, extreme fatigue, swollen lymph nodes, and aching muscles and joints are common symptoms of sleeping sickness. Some people develop a skin rash. Progressive confusion, personality changes, and other neurologic problems occur after infection has invaded the central nervous system.