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The number of animals infected with the new global screw worm (NWS), which feeds on meat, increased by 53% four weeks to mid -August, the government’s Mexican data shows.
While the contamination of the larvae flies primarily affect the cattle, Mexican officials also registered cases in dogs, horses, sheep and humans.
According to local media, dozens of people were treated for infection in hospitals in Southern Mexican States of Camche and Chopas.
The growth of affected animals in Mexico occurs a few days after the American health authorities said they confirmed the first human cause in the patient who returned to the US from Salvador.
The NWS was announced by the US in 1966 after sterile men were released to disrupt the insect reproductive cycle and Mexico went with an example in 1991.
However, it remained widespread in tropical and subtropical areas of Central and South America and recently spread to the north with the first new case in Mexico in November 2024.
The new lumper’s touch is flying (Cochliomyia hominivorax) lays eggs in open wounds on the skin of warm animals. They are also attracted by the mucous membranes such as the nose, mouth, eyelid, ears and genitals.
The eggs hatch into the larvae that form in the wound or on the membrane, feeding on a live flesh.
Infection is called myosis and, if left untreated, can cause serious damage and may even be deadly, because the larvae in the tissue sharp hooks in the mouth.
Healthcare representatives warn that while deadly people are rare, people with previous health problems and the elderly need to take care.
The Ministry of Health of Mexico said an 86-year-old woman died in the staff of a skin cancer, which increased her screw larvae infection.
Those who are most at risk, people who work with the animal, or those who live in the countryside, where infected animals are present.
US centers for the control and prevention of the disease call on people who may have visited the region where flies on screws that will be vigilant to the symptoms. These include unexplained skin lesions, the mood sensation moves in the wound or nose, mouth or eyes and see the larvae in an open sore throat.
Experts note that prevention is key when visiting rural areas in the affected regions, which includes the preservation of any open wounds clean and covered as well as the use of insects.
They also ask people suspected that they may have been infected to seek medical help.
