What is arboviral encephalitis?
Arboviral refers to a group of viruses that are transmitted in nature by arthropods that feed on blood and transmit viruses to host animals. Arthropods in the United States that transmit diseases are mosquitoes and ticks. Encephalitis refers to inflammation of the white and grey matter of the brain. This can be caused by a number of infectious agents. How are arboviral diseases spread? People become infected with arboviruses generally by the bite of a mosquito or tick. In the United States there are two tick borne arboviruses, Colorado tick fever and Powssan. These tick-borne viral infections have never been reported in Indiana. Mosquitoes are known to transmit 18 viral diseases in North America; many of them are rarely if ever reported as causing human disease. The arboviruses normally associated with human disease in the United States are Eastern equine encephalitis, Western equine encephalitis, West Nile virus, St. Louis encephalitis, and LaCrosse encephalitis In addition to mosquit
