Current status and outlook of mosquito-borne diseases in Korea

ABSTRACT

The recent epidemic of Zika virus in South America caused people around the world to exhibit an increased interest in the impact of arboviral illnesses. In Korea, malaria and Japanese encephalitis are the most important mosquito-borne diseases that occur indigenously. However, with the continuously increasing number of international travelers, the incidence of imported arboviral illnesses is also increasing. Currently, dengue fever is the most common mosquito-borne disease among Korean international travelers. The number of patients with Japanese encephalitis, chikungunya fever, and Zika virus infection is also on the rise. Many countries that have disease-transmitting mosquitoes have already experienced autochthonous arboviral infections due to the introduction of viruses by travelers. Moreover, with global warming and urbanization of the areas in which mosquito-borne diseases occur, the environment is becoming more favorable for mosquito-borne diseases. This concise review describes the current status and outlook of mosquito-borne diseases in Korea.