It Is Official: Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases in the United States and Territories on the Rise—Now What?

In the May 1 edition of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), experts summarize the alarming increase in the number of vector-borne disease cases reported in the United States and territories from 2004 to 2016. Of the almost 650,000 cases, >491,000 were tick-borne and >150,000 were mosquito-borne. These numbers are obviously cause for concern, but more important is the steep upward trend. The very significant increase in the number of vector-borne disease cases reported, the emergence of several new tick-borne pathogens, and the emergence/spread of several previously described mosquito-borne diseases should be yet another wake up call to policy makers. The fact that in this issue of the journal, articles on several of the pathogens listed in the CDC report, including chikungunya, dengue, Powassan, West Nile, and Zika viruses, are testimony to the journals relevance and timeliness as a significant contributor and resource to increase knowledge and understanding of these increasingly important pathogens.

Since 2001, Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases has been serving the community with research reports, editorials, and short communications on the urgency of pathogens in the United States and around the globe that threaten people and other animals, including livestock that are a critical component for keeping people fed and healthy. According to the MMWR, Lyme disease is the single most important tick-borne disease and our journal has published >250 peer-reviewed articles on this disease.

In our very first issue in 2001, Duane Gubler, a former Head of CDC's Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, discussed mosquito-borne diseases and commented, “The first thing we need is for the public and public health officials to realize that if we are going to prevent epidemics of exotic diseases like West Nile, we need to rebuild the infrastructure to deal with mosquito-borne diseases. We are very ill-prepared to deal with these kinds of introductions at the beginning of the 21st century.”

The widespread epidemics caused by chikungunya and Zika viruses and their permanent establishment in many countries have proven him right, and no doubt, the next epidemic will prove him right again. We must continue to move this conversation forward.

I invite you to submit your letters to the editor, editorials, perspectives, and other articles on this topic to Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases. The time is now!

Contact Editor-in-Chief Stephen Higgs today.