In a follow-up on the dengue fever situation in Florida in 2025, health authorities report the third autochthonous dengue fever case in the state last week.
The latest case was reported from Brevard County, on the Atlantic coast of eastern Central Florida.
This brings the total locally transmitted dengue cases to three (two previous cases were reported from Miami-Dade County). This latest case was serotyped by PCR as DENV-3.
This prompted the Florida Department of Health in Brevard County (DOH-Brevard) to issue a Mosquito-Borne Illness Advisory.
DOH-Brevard and Brevard County Mosquito Control are coordinating surveillance and prevention efforts by ground and aerial spraying.
In addition to the locally transmitted cases, state health officials have reported 99 cases with onset in 2025 in individuals with travel history to a dengue-endemic area in the two weeks prior to onset.
The Department of Health notes:
Whether you’re at home or traveling abroad, preventing mosquito bites is the best way to reduce the risk of mosquito-borne disease.
Mosquitoes can be found in many different environments and you may not always notice when you have been bitten. Mosquito activity in Florida can be year round.
The following are some steps that can be taken to help prevent mosquito bites.
DRAIN: Water from garbage cans, house gutters, pool covers, coolers, toys, flower pots, or any other containers where sprinkler or rain water has collected.
DISCARD: Old tires, drums, bottles, cans, pots and pans, broken appliances, and other items that aren't being used.
EMPTY and CLEAN: Birdbaths and pet's water bowls at least once or twice a week.
PROTECT: Boats and vehicles from rain with tarps that don't accumulate water.
MAINTAIN: The water balance (pool chemistry) of swimming pools. Empty plastic swimming pools when not in use. Repair broken screens on windows, doors, porches, and patios.
CLOTHING: If you must be outside when mosquitoes are active, cover up. Wear shoes, socks, long pants, and long sleeves.
REPELLENT: Apply mosquito repellent to bare skin and clothing. Always use repellents according to the label. Repellents with DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus, para-menthane-diol, and IR3535 are effective.
Use netting to protect children younger than 2 months.