Prolonged and unprotected exposure of the respiratory system in a dust storm can also cause silicosis, which, if left untreated, will lead to asphyxiation; silicosis is an incurable condition that may also lead to lung cancer. There is also the danger of keratoconjunctivitis sicca ("dry eyes") which, in severe cases without immediate and proper treatment, can lead to blindness. Economic impact
Dust storms cause soil loss from the drylands, and worse, they preferentially remove organic matter and the nutrient-rich lightest particles, thereby reducing agricultural productivity. Also, the abrasive effect of the storm damages young crop plants. Dust storms also reduce visibility, affecting aircraft and road transportation. Dust can also have beneficial effects where it deposits: Central and South American rainforests get most of their mineral nutrients from the Sahara; iron-poor ocean regions get iron; and dust in Hawaii increases plantain growth. In northern China as well as the mid-western U.S., ancient dust storm deposits known as loess are highly fertile soils, but they are also a significant source of contemporary dust storms when soil-securing vegetation is disturbed. On Mars
Dust storms are not limited to Earth and have been known to form on other planets such as Mars. These dust storms can extend over larger areas than those on Earth, sometimes encircling the planet, with wind speeds as high as 25 m/s (60 mph). However, given Mars much lower atmospheric pressure (roughly 1% that of Earths), the intensity of Mars storms could never reach the kind of hurricane-force winds that are experienced on Earth.
Controlled, in-home spraying of DDT is effective as it gives the home immunity against arthropods while not contaminating the local water supplies and doing as much ecological damage as was once the case when DDT was first introduced.While other species gradually gained resistance to DDT and other insecticides that were used, T. penetrans did not; as a result, the incidence of tungiasis in Mexico is very low when compared to the rest of Latin America, especially Brazil, where rates in poor areas have been known to be as high or higher than 50%. There was a 40-year period with no tungiasis cases in Mexico. It was not until August 1989 that three Mexican patients presented with the disease. Though there were other cases of tungiasis reported thereafter, all were acquired in Africa. Treatment
As the disease is self-limiting, at least when exposure to the parasite is limited, management is mostly confined to treatment. Due to the secondary infection that can cause serious medical issues, the recommended course of action upon diagnosis is a surgical extraction of the fleas followed by the application of a topical antibiotic. Care should be taken to avoid tearing the flea during the extraction procedures as severe inflammation will result. The same will occur if part of the flea is left behind. Sterile equipment should always be used, as contaminated instruments could act as mechanical vectors for pathogens to enter the body.There is no drug that has proven to be effective against embedded fleas.