Zeledón R, Vargas L G
Am J Trop Med Hyg. 1984 Mar;33(2):232-5. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.1984.33.232.
In an endemic area of Chagas' disease in Costa Rica, 50 houses infested with Triatoma dimidiata were re-examined after a period of 14-17 years. Criteria used were two socioeconomic parameters which are closely associated with the presence of the bugs: colonies of triatomines inside houses are favored by the presence of a dirt floor, and stored firewood is an excellent refuge for insects outdoors. Indoor infestation was completely eliminated from nine of 13 houses in which the floors had been changed from dirt to concrete during this period, and nearly eliminated from the other four, supporting the hypothesis that the disappearance of dirt floors makes it difficult for the bugs to thrive inside houses. Of the 21 houses that lost the infestation (inside, outside, or both), firewood had been eliminated in 13, and of 29 houses that remained infested firewood had been eliminated in only two. An inverse relationship was found between distance of firewood piles from the house and presence of bugs. It is supposed that a colony of insects frequently starts in stored firewood and then moves into the household if a dirt floor is present. Removal of firewood and replacement of dirt floors by concrete would provide good prophylactic measures against the transmission of Chagas' disease in areas where T. dimidiata is the vector.
在哥斯达黎加恰加斯病的一个流行地区，对50间有二斑锥蝽出没的房屋在14至17年后进行了重新检查。所采用的标准是两个与臭虫存在密切相关的社会经济参数：泥土地面有利于屋内锥蝽群落的形成，而储存的柴火是户外昆虫的绝佳藏身之处。在此期间，13间房屋中有9间的地面从泥土地面改为混凝土楼面，室内虫害被彻底消除，另外4间也几乎消除，这支持了泥土地面消失使臭虫难以在屋内繁衍的假设。在21间消除了虫害（屋内、屋外或两者皆有）的房屋中，13间已清除了柴火，而在29间仍有虫害的房屋中，只有2间清除了柴火。发现柴堆离房屋的距离与臭虫的存在呈反比关系。据推测，昆虫群落通常从储存的柴火开始，然后如果有泥土地面，就会进入屋内。清除柴火并用混凝土取代泥土地面将为以二斑锥蝽为传播媒介的地区提供良好的预防恰加斯病传播的措施。
