While the safest concentration of DEET for children has not been clearly established, a prudent approach is to tailor the concentration to the family's activities. If the child is going to be outdoors for an hour or so, use 10%-15% DEET (or similar concentrations of Picaridin); for all-day outings,use 24%-30% DEET.
With the arrival of summer, children are spending more time outdoors. Along with fun activities comes the nuisance of mosquitoes and other insects carrying the threat of insect borne diseases.
In 2006, there were 4,269 human cases of West Nile virus-associated illness. Although that number is less than half of the human cases reported in 2003, last year's case totals easily surpassed those of 2004 and 2005.
Parents may come to your office with questions about how to prevent West Nile, Lyme disease, insect-borne encephalitis and other dangerous bug bites of summer. This is a good time to remind...
