Dengue: Argentinians turn to homemade repellent amid surge in cases

Argentinians are making homemade mosquito repellent and scouring pharmacies for off-the-shelf products as the worst outbreak of dengue fever in recent history has led to shortages.

Demand for mosquito repellent has meant that sprays have become almost impossible to find in Buenos Aires and are now being resold online at more than 10 times their retail price. Authorities lifted import restrictions on foreign made mosquito repellents on 11 April in the hope of boosting supplies. They announced that production at local laboratories would be ramped up. “We spoke with producers who told us that they are now manufacturing at their maximum capacity,” Argentina’s health minister Mario Russo told the local Telefé channel.

Argentina is facing an intense, humid summer and its worst dengue fever outbreak in recent history. More than 270 000 infections and …