About 100 years ago, it was dicovered that insects transmitgrave, mainly tropical diseases - very much to theastonishment of the physicians of that time, who saw this asa new, possibly easy, way of eradicating the diseases byexterminating the vectors. For some years, DDT and otherthen new insecticides achieved great improvements, butsubsequently serious setbacks emerged:insecticide-resistance and anxiety about toxicity to man andanimals. In the past twenty years, serious efforts have beenmade tofind alternatives, with varying degrees of success.

1: The Discovery of Unsuspected Dangers

Prologue: How Arthropods Came to Transmit Human Diseases
Section 1: The Insect Vectors
Section 2: Diseases Transmitted by Mites and Ticks
Some Concluding Remarks Regarding the Transmission of Arthropod-Borne Diseases
2: Control Measures Pre-DDT
Early Responses to New Opportunities
Control Measures During the Inter-War Period
The Control of Various Insect-Borne Diseases
3: The Impact of the new Pesticides
New Kinds of Insecticide
Advances in the Control of Various Insect-Borne Diseases
4: Modern Problems and Possibilities
The Present Predicament
Current Options for Vector Control
Human Factors in Vector Control.