Incidence and Epidemiology
Most notifications are from Queensland, tropical Western Australia and the Northern Territory. Geographical risk factors include areas of higher rainfall and higher maximal tides. In the tropics, Ross River Fever is more prevalent during the summer/autumn "wet season", particularly January - March, when mosquito populations numbers are high. In southern parts of Australia, this time period may shift to earlier in the year during spring/summer.
Areas near suitable mosquito breeding grounds — marshes, wetlands, waterways and farms with irrigation systems — are high risk areas for outbreaks. As such, the disease is more characteristic of rural and regional areas. Infection is most common in adult aged 25–44 years old, with males and females equally affected. Ross River Fever is on the Australian Department of Health and Ageing's list of notifiable diseases.
Read more about this topic: Ross River Fever
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