Volume 11, Number 9—September 2005
Dispatch
Protective Behavior and West Nile Virus Risk
Mark Loeb*
, Susan J. Elliott*, Brian Gibson†, Margaret Fearon†, Robert Nosal‡, Michael Drebot§, Colin D'Cuhna†, Daniel Harrington*, Stephanie Smith*, Pauline George‡, and John Eyles*
, Susan J. Elliott*, Brian Gibson†, Margaret Fearon†, Robert Nosal‡, Michael Drebot§, Colin D'Cuhna†, Daniel Harrington*, Stephanie Smith*, Pauline George‡, and John Eyles*
Table 2
Risk factors for West Nile virus (WNV) infection among household members in south Oakville*
| Characteristic | No. (%) respondents
or mean (SD) |
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Seropositive (n = 46) | Seronegative (n = 1,459) | OR (95% CI), p value | |
| Indoor exposures | |||
| Open deck or unscreened porch on home | 40 (87) | 1074 (74) | 2.36 (0.99–6.9), 0.04 |
| Tears in screens | 12 (26) | 343 (24) | 1.14 (0.55–2.32), 0.69 |
| Mosquitoes in home >1×/wk | 10 (22) | 314 (22) | 1.01 (0.46–2.14), 0.98 |
| Outdoor exposures | |||
| Time outside at dusk or dawn on work day (h) | 2.7 (1.5) | 2.1(1.4) | 1.32† (1.09–1.58), 0.004 |
| Total time outside on a work day (h) | 6.01 (3.9) | 5.0 (3.4) | 1.08† (1.00–1.16), 0.066 |
| Time spent outside at dusk or dawn on a nonwork day (h) | 3.1 (1.9) | 2.2 (1.3) | 1.48† (1.23–1.78), 0.001 |
| Time total outside on a nonwork day (h) | 8.2 (4.5) | 6.7 (3.4) | 1.13† (1.04 to 1.22), 0.003 |
| Personal behavior | |||
| Rarely or never avoid areas where mosquitoes are likely to be a problem | 30 (65) | 685 (47) | 2.11 (1.10–4.08), 0.015 |
| Rarely or never avoid going outdoors | 43 (93) | 1,190 (82) | 3.2 (1.01–16.20), 0.041 |
| Rarely or never wear long sleeves or long pants when outdoors | 30 (65) | 715 (49) | 1.94 (1.01–3.76), 0.031 |
| Rarely or never wear mosquito repellent when outdoors >30 min | 31(67) | 944 (65) | 1.12 (0.58–2.19), 0.73 |
| Practice >2 personal protective behavior traits‡ | 19 (41) | 894 (61) | 0.44 (0.23–0.83), 0.005 |
| Source-reduction behavior | |||
| Drain objects that may collect water | 13 (28) | 457 (31) | 0.86 (0.43–1.71), 0.65 |
| Check and clean gutters | 29 (63) | 1,009 (69) | 0.75 (0.40–1.45), 0.36 |
| Use bug lamps/bug zappers | 7 (15) | 132 (9) | 1.80 (0.67–4.17), 0.156 |
| Practice >2 source-reduction behavior traits | 30 (65) | 1,044 (72) | 0.74 (0.38–1.43), 0.33 |
*OR, odds ratio; CI, confidence interval.
†Odds of WNV infection per hour spent outdoors.
‡Avoiding mosquitoes, wearing long sleeves and long pants, using mosquito repellent.
Page created: April 23, 2012
Page updated: April 23, 2012
Page reviewed: April 23, 2012
The conclusions, findings, and opinions expressed by authors contributing to this journal do not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Public Health Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the authors' affiliated institutions. Use of trade names is for identification only and does not imply endorsement by any of the groups named above.