Wear long-sleeved shirts, long pants, and socks when outdoors and use mosquito repellant on exposed skin. Avoid unnecessary outdoor activity from dusk until dawn, when mosquitoes are most active. Remove water from cans and jars, discarded tires, clogged roof gutters, yard decorations or any other outdoor containers since mosquitoes lay eggs in standing water. Ensure that your home has tight-fitting screens over windows and doors to keep mosquitoes from entering apartments and homes. SLE is transmitted when an infected mosquito bites humans.
Infections vary widely in severity.
Most people who are infected have no symptoms or may experience a fever and headache before fully recovering. In some individuals, particularly the elderly or infants, SLE can be a serious disease that affects the central nervous system. At its most serious, the disease can cause permanent neurological damage and it can be fatal. Symptoms of SLE, which generally occur five to15 days following the bite of an infected mosquito, include high fever associated with severe headache, stiff neck, and disorientation.