The School of Geography and Environmental Studies at the University of Tasmania is conducting a survey to find out in which suburbs of Hobart jack jumper ants are likely to occur in and which suburbs they are unlikely to occur in. We require participants who are willing to spare 20 minutes of their time to fill out a simple questionnaire about their house and garden and whether the jack jumper ant is present or not.

The answers that participants provide in the survey will guide future management recommendations to minimise the threat to humans from jack jumper stings by helping to predict and identify areas of Hobart and surrounds where there is a high risk of a human–jack jumper encounter.

It is important that we receive questionnaires from participants who have gardens without the ant just as much as we receive them from participants who have seen ants in their gardens. So even if you have never seen a jack jumper ant in your garden, we are still interested in hearing from you.

If you would like us to send you a copy through the mail, or further information, please email providing your address or call John on 0407 224 032.

During the following months, antallergy.org will be stepping up its campaign to highlight the urgency of the current situation facing both sufferers, and those who are yet to discover that they too have a life threatening allergy to the sting of the Jack Jumper ant.

Ant Sting Register

Over the coming months, antallergy.org will be seeking ways in which to establish a register of people that have been admitted for emergency treatment for anaphylactic reaction to Jack Jumper ant stings in Tasmania.

This register will include recent and past admissions, and will form an invaluable record of the severity and prevalence of Jack Jumper sting Allergy in Tasmania.

Ant Allergy Car Stickers now available!

If you would like an Ant Allergy Can Kill car sticker, they are now available from Melanie Gordon for a gold coin donation.  For further information please call Melanie on 6231 9888.

An internationally renowned clinical trial conducted at the Royal Hobart Hospital, has developed the only known effective vaccine that can prevent life-threatening reactions in these people.

Research funding that has provided this treatment to 60 trial participants for the last four years runs out in December 2005.

If the programme is discontinued, access to this life-altering treatment will be denied and preventable deaths may occur.

antallergy.org has been established to request that the Tasmanian Government immediately allocate the funding necessary to provide life saving treatment to those Tasmanians at the greatest risk of death.

Jack Jumper Ant Allergy in Australia

It is estimated that up to 50,000 people throughout south eastern Australia are known to suffer a serious allergy to Jack Jumper Ant stings.

With the knowledge that a 100% effective vaccine has been developed through an internationally renowned Tasmanian trial, antallergy.org is also calling on the Tasmanian government to work with other State and Commonwealth governments to make the treatment available to sufferers throughout Australia.

This website has been established to provide ongoing advocacy, support and to raise community awareness about this debilitating condition.

This website is not intended to be used to promote or replace medical advice and we would urge you to read and take note of our disclaimer.

Mr Evans is getting some early indications on the ants’ preferences.

“At the moment I’m sort of getting the inkling that they prefer sort of drier vegetation types and drier environments,” he said.

“They like a bit of sunlight, not too much canopy cover, basically.

“So they need a bit of warmth, ants aren’t very good at maintaining their own warmth.”

The questionnaire is available at http://www.antallergy.org, and will soon be available on the university’s website.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/31/2203199.htm

A Steering Committee has been established to oversee the progress of the project, and the Business Case has been approved by Senior Management of the Department of Health and Human Services. 

The immediate challenges for the project team include:

• Harvesting ants, extracting and preparing venom for injection
• Development of laboratory assays to ensure the quality of the venom
• Discussions with key stakeholders, including Paediatricians, Emergency Physicians, General Medical Physicians and General Practitioners
• Development of Treatment Protocols

The overall aim of these activities is to provide the safest and most effective treatment for those who are unfortunately allergic to the sting of the jack jumper.

As you can appreciate, there are a number of unknowns, so at this stage we are still unclear as to when treatment will be able to begin, however, over the next couple of weeks we will be meeting with key stakeholders, and will keep you informed of our progress.

The next Antallergy meeting will be held in Seminar Room One, Level One, Clinical Research Centre, Hobart.

Entry is off Campbell Street (24 Campbell Street) - close to the corner of Collins and Campbell street.  Look for a white double door frame with glass panels.

The first floor is up 3 sets of stairs!

For further information, contact Melanie Gordon on 03 6231 9888

All welcome.

FRI 13 JAN 2006

A TEENAGE girl was flown by helicopter from Bruny Island last night, after being bitten by a jack jumper.

Tasmania Police said the girl had a serious allergic reaction and needed urgent medical help.

The Westpac Rescue Helicopter was called to Moorina Bay on Bruny Island about 6.45pm and transported the girl to the Royal Hobart Hospital for treatment.

Ambulance Service Tasmania said the teenager had a previous history of allergic reactions and the medication she carried with her ensured her situation did not become critical.