Cost of control and management

Public Health Significance of Urban Pests 65 The costs of medical problems associated with cockroaches are difficult to estimate. Asthma affects 15 million Americans, approximately a third being under 8 years of age Benson Marano, 1998. Children allergic to cockroach allergen and exposed to high levels had a 3.4 times higher rate of hospitalization for asthma than other children. This group also had 78 more unscheduled visits to health care providers because of asthma. They also missed significantly more days of school than did other children Rust Reierson, 1991. An estimate of the national economic burden of asthma in the United States in 2000 is US 14.5 billion Krieger et al., 2002. The actual medical and societal costs associated with cockroach-related asthma might be a considerable portion of that cost.

2.3.2. Cost of control and management

The costs of cockroach control services vary greatly, depending on the pest species and locality. Because it is generally assumed that cockroach IPM programmes cost more than conventional pest control services, a comparison of conventional programmes with IPM programmes is insightful. In 1998, in the north-eastern United States, conventional pest control services cost US 65 an hour, whereas IPM services were US 80 an hour Rambo, 1998. However, it is assumed that IPM should actually reduce the frequency of visits and consequently the labour costs in the long term. Williams and colleagues 2005 reported that after all costs were considered, conventional service was US 8.57 per unit and IPM was US 7.49 per unit. In their study, cockroach infestations were very low in schools, and costs would probably have increased if they had been more severe. Brenner and colleagues 2003 set up an IPM-based programme for low-income house- holds in New York City, involving monitoring, baiting, cleaning and structural repairs. The costs for IPM were US 46–69 per unit in the first year and US 24 per unit in the following year. In comparison, conventional chemical controls cost US 24–46 per unit and involved no repairs or structural modifications to the apartments. In IPM program- mes, the number of cockroach infestations declined by 50 over six months. In public housing in Portsmouth, Virginia, the costs of conventional crack-and-crevice treatments with sprays and dusts were compared with vacuuming, baits and insect growth regulators IGRs for controlling German cockroaches Miller Meek, 2004. The average costs for IPM and conventional treatments were US 4.06 and US 1.50 per unit, respectively. After eight months, cockroach populations decreased about 80 in IPM units, compared with a 300 increase with conventional treatments. In 2006, in the United States, the cost of treating an apartment was about US 150 and buildings typically cost US 1200 or more to treat. Commercial accounts, such as restau- rants, typically cost US 250 a month to treat.

2.4. Impact of poverty