Raccoons in San Diego County as Sentinels for West Nile Virus Surveillance

Authors

  • Sarah C. Marikos Early Warning Infectious Disease Surveillance Program (EWIDS), California Department of Public Health
  • Karen L. Ferran Early Warning Infectious Disease Surveillance Program (EWIDS), California Department of Public Health
  • Esmeralda Iniguez-Stevens Early Warning Infectious Disease Surveillance Program (EWIDS), California Department of Public Health
  • Nikos Gurfield County of San Diego, Department of Environmental Health

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5210/ojphi.v5i1.4599

Abstract

The Early Warning Infectious Disease Surveillance Program (EWIDS), County of San Diego Department of Environmental Health, and Project Wildlife are evaluating raccoons as potential early warning sentinel species for West Nile Virus (WNV) surveillance. Research has indicated that raccoons shed WNV through oral and fecal routes, and that this may have important implications for public health and animal health. Raccoons are peridomestic animals; thus they may allow for better localization of WNV activity in communities and may serve as more effective early warning sentinels for WNV than traditional bird sentinels.

Author Biography

Sarah C. Marikos, Early Warning Infectious Disease Surveillance Program (EWIDS), California Department of Public Health

Sarah is the Epidemiologist Analyst for the Early Warning Infectious Disease Surveillance (EWIDS) Program. Her work focuses on surveillance, disease emergence, and One Health in the border region. Prior to joining EWIDS, Sarah responded to the 2009H1N1 pandemic at the UC Davis Medical Center and conducted public health research with the Berkeley Survey Research Center. Sarah has a MPH from San Diego State University and Bachelor's degrees in Interdisciplinary Studies and Geography from UC Berkeley.

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Published

2013-03-24

How to Cite

Marikos, S. C., Ferran, K. L., Iniguez-Stevens, E., & Gurfield, N. (2013). Raccoons in San Diego County as Sentinels for West Nile Virus Surveillance. Online Journal of Public Health Informatics, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.5210/ojphi.v5i1.4599

Issue

Section

Poster Presentations