In an age when diseases transmitted to people by insects or animals (called “vector-borne diseases”) are emerging worldwide, personal protective measures are essential. The development of permethrin-impregnated clothing has been one recent advance in protecting persons at risk.
Soldiers live, train and operate in non-combat areas every day around the world. There is increased risk of getting bitten by insects that transmit potentially lethal diseases. Only a few are preventable by vaccines. Although there are certain drugs available for the prevention of malaria, drug resistance is currently on the increase and spreading throughout many parts of the world.
For this reason, personal protective measures against biting arthropods and arthropod-borne diseases constitute the first line of defense. A major advance in the protection of high-risk personnel (for example, outdoor workers, travelers and Soldiers) has been the development of topical repellents in combination with residual insecticides that can be impregnated into clothing, tents and netting.
