| CDC Yellow Book Region Overview : |
Region Introduction
The Caribbean: Anguilla (UK), Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda (UK), Cayman Islands, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique (France), Montserrat (UK), Netherlands Antilles (Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire), Puerto Rico (US), Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, Virgin Islands (UK), and Virgin Islands (US).
The islands, a number of them mountainous with peaks 1,000 to 2,500 meters (3,281 to 8,202 feet) high, have a consistent and pleasant tropical climate with heavy rainstorms and high winds at certain times of the year.
Anthropod Borne Diseases
Of the arthropod-borne diseases, malaria occurs in endemic form only in Haiti and in parts of the Dominican Republic. Yellow fever is enzootic in Trinidad & Tobago. Diffuse cutaneous leishmaniasis was recently discovered in the Dominican Republic. Bancroftian filariasis occurs in Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and some other islands, and other filariases can occasionally be found. Human fascioliasis due to Fasciola hepatica is endemic in Cuba. Outbreaks of dengue fever can occur throughout the area, and dengue hemorrhagic fever has also occurred. Tularemia has been reported from Haiti. Of the foodborne and waterborne diseases, bacillary and amebic dysenteries are common, and hepatitis A is reported, particularly in the northern islands. No cases of cholera have been reported in the Caribbean. Schistosomiasis is endemic in the Dominican Republic, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Puerto Rico, Saint Lucia and Antigua & Barbuda, in each of which control operations are in progress. Animal rabies, particularly in the mongoose, is reported from several islands.
Other Hazards
Other hazards: Spiny sea urchins and coelenterates (coral and jellyfish) and snake bites can be hazards in some areas. |
