(NEXSTAR) – A “devastating pest” known as the New World screwworm is dangerously close to the United States, American health officials warn.
The parasitic screwworm has been found in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas, which is just across the border from Texas.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a health alert Tuesday advising health departments stay ready to identify the screwworm and treat cases if they see them.
The New World screwworm flies lay their eggs in animals’ wounds, noses, ears, eyes or mouths. Their eggs develop into parasitic larvae, or maggots, that feed on the surrounding flesh as they burrow deeper.
The CDC says the screwworm primarily impacts livestock animals, but the flies can lay eggs on any warm-blooded animals, including people and pets.
People are at the highest risk of being exposed to the screwworm if they spend time in areas where the flies are present, like Central America and Mexico, and if they have open wounds like scratches or cuts. Those who spend more time outdoors and around animals are at the highest risk of exposure.
To treat a screwworm infestation, the CDC advises clinicians to remove all the eggs and larvae from the person’s body. That may require surgery if the maggots are deeply embedded.
If untreated, screwworm cases can be fatal.
The U.S. has long been working to keep the screwworm out of the country, releasing sterile male flies into the wild. The hope is that females, which only mate once in their short lives, will mate with sterile males, resulting in eggs that are never fertilized. The strategy helped eradicate the New World screwworm from the Florida Keys in 2017.
The latest outbreak in Central America and Mexico has 1,190 human cases and seven deaths. More than 148,000 cases have been reported in animals.
As the parasite creeps closer to the U.S. border, public health experts fear it’s only a matter of time before the screwworm starts laying eggs on Americans and their animals.
“It’s just plain cowboy logic — when you’re seeing this many cases, this fast, it tells you there may be established screwworm fly populations in Tamaulipas,” Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said in a statement to Border Report. “We’re grateful sterile fly deployment has begun, but make no mistake: Texas producers need to stay on high alert along our border.”
The cattle industry fears screwworm infiltration could cost the industry billions in damages.
