Mexico: Baja California reports 40 Rickettsia deaths so far in 2024
The Baja California Health Secretariat reports a total of 81 positive cases of rickettsiosis in 2024 to date, of which 40 have died.
The capital of Mexicali has seen the most cases in the state with 41.
Data from the state agency indicate that 28 of the positive cases were detected in the Tijuana Jurisdiction (which includes Tecate and Playas de Rosarito), seven in Ensenada and five more in Vicente Guerrero.
According to the information, there are currently eight other suspected cases pending results: three from Mexicali, two from Tijuana, two from Ensenada and one from San Quintín.
José Adrián Medina Amarillas, Secretary of Health of the state, said the problem that exists in the state due to the high number of street dogs has been one of the factors that have extended the presence of the disease, which is transmitted through the bite of the brown dog tick.
Although there is no official census of stray dogs in the state, the doctor stressed that only in the eastern area of Mexicali, which includes colonies such as El Robledo, Rivera Campestre and the area of Los Pueblas, the existence of at least a thousand street dogs is estimated.
“If we do a weighting in the entire municipality we could have around 3,000 or up to 5,000 street dogs, just in the municipality In Mexicali, the problem is of that magnitude; if we see that the population in Tijuana has doubled, surely the problem there has also doubled.”
Given this situation, the official stated that prevention campaigns will continue in various areas of Baja California considered “at risk” for the spread of rickettsiosis, such as the eastern area of Mexicali, Popular 89 in Ensenada and the eastern area of Tijuana.
He also confirmed that they will continue with the distribution of anti-tick collars for dogs living on the street, as well as with the application of the drug Bravecto®, an oral tick killer for animals that lasts for several months.