2nd locally acquired dengue case reported in San Diego County
In a follow-up to the locally acquired dengue fever situation in San Diego County, county health officials report investigating a second case of locally acquired dengue. This second case is not related to the first case of locally acquired dengue that occurred earlier this month in Escondido.
The Vista resident who became sick and hospitalized with dengue had not recently traveled to an area where the mosquito transmitted illness is common.
County Vector Control is in Vista today through Oct. 29 treating the area around about 60 homes to keep mosquitoes from potentially spreading the dengue virus and protect the public’s health.
Dengue is a tropical viral disease that is not commonly found in the United States. Since the invasive Aedes mosquitoes were first detected in San Diego County in 2014, there has been only one other locally acquired case of dengue in San Diego County.
People who travel to countries where dengue is common can get infected with dengue through mosquito bites. So far this year, there have been 53 cases of travel-related dengue in San Diego County.
Statewide, California has reported 11 locally acquired dengue cases- LA County with 9—Baldwin Park (6), Panorama City (1), El Monte (2) and San Diego County (2).
Dengue is a disease caused by a virus that spreads to people mainly through mosquito bites. Dengue is common in tropical and subtropical regions such as the Caribbean (including Puerto Rico), Central and South America, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific islands.
Because the types of mosquitoes that spread dengue are common throughout many areas of the United States, local spread of dengue is possible. In the continental U.S., cases of locally spread dengue have been rare, with a few reported in Florida, Hawaii, Texas, and more recently, Arizona and California.