The World Health Organization estimates that more than 40 percent of the world’s population reside in communities where dengue fever is endemic.
About 400 million people are infected by the virus every year, and one-fourth of those cases evolve into dengue fever itself—resulting in fever, headache, rash, vomiting, and other symptoms.
That’s why scientists are eager to find ways to cut down on the number of infections—and that starts with the source: mosquitos that carry the virus. In a new study published Thursday in, a group of Taiwan researchers show the results of an ambitious project to use sewer-dwelling robots to monitor mosquito breeding grounds. The authors say this helps public health experts fight the spread of dengue fever in urban communities.
Robots, however, aren’t limited by the same constraints as humans. They have an easier time traversing small, dark environments. They don’t have to fear the hazards that could harm humans like scurrying rats or literal human waste. They can sit still for hours, or even days, to monitor areas with high precision.
In all, the robots were able to find evidence of mosquito habitation in 20.7 percent of the inspected sewers. In those sewers, public health teams applied treatment measures like insecticides or high-temperature water jets to get rid of the mosquitos. The gravitraps confirmed drops in density from 0.62 to 0.19 GI.
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