There used to be a dengue season in Costa Rica, and it used to coincide with the green (rainy) season. That is no longer the case; climate change and a mutational process has caused the Aedes aegypti mosquito species to thrive year-round and spread beyond the tropics. Dengue fever prevention is now a constant job for La Caja, Costa Rica’s public health system, and the latest campaign focuses on the elimination of mosquito breeding spaces.

The years 2012 and 2013 saw record numbers of dengue fever infections in Costa Rica. The current number reported by La Caja, 11,800 patients, marks a significant decrease from nearly 50,000 cases last year; all the same, public health officials would like to see even sharper reductions.

Dr. Maria Eugenia Villalta , Medical Director of La Caja, explained during a recent press conference that eliminating mosquito breeding spaces is an immediate priority ever since epidemiologists determined that Aedes aegypti in Costa Rica are also native carriers of the deadly chikungunya tropical disease.

A visual and structural feature of the new campaign to control dengue will consist of bus stops around the country that will display practical information about spending at least ten minutes each week looking for possible breeding spots. Aedes aegypti simply needs a small amount of clean water to lay eggs; for this reason, it is important to check patios and gardens for any objects, or even plants, that may accumulate water -particularly during the green season. The “dengue bus stops” that La Caja intends to build will feature benches made from recycled tires; the goal is to illustrate that objects destined to be repurposed must be put to use right away instead of letting them sit outside and collect rainwater.

One of the slogans of this campaign is “Manda la parada que nos gane el dengue,” which is a euphemistic slang expression used in Costa Rica to say: “it is inconceivable that we would lose the fight against dengue.”

Dengue hemorrhagic fever, also known as the breakbone illness due to the sharp aches that pulsate throughout the anatomy of infected patients, can be fatal. When it comes to dengue, Costa Rica has one of the highest rates of infection but the lowest mortality rate in the Americas.