To the Editor: Dugdale proposed recently in the Journal that people who have a skin reaction to mosquito bites are less likely to be infected by Ross River virus than those who do not.1 As he quotes Kumar, who made a similar comment about malaria infection,2 one could presumably extend his idea to other conditions transmitted by mosquitoes. This accords with my own personal experience of dengue fever acquired in Fiji.
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- 1. Dugdale AE. Itching bites may limit Ross River virus infection [letter]. Med J Aust 2002; 177: 399-400. <eMJA full text>
- 2. Kumar A. Itching and immunity [letter]. Lancet 1996; 348: 1383.