This state’s dengue outbreak is now the largest in the US in decades

Key Points:

• Florida is facing its largest dengue outbreak in decades, with 252 locally acquired cases reported by late September, primarily in Hillsborough County, surpassing previous state records and ranking among the highest in the continental U.S. in decades.
• Hillsborough, Pasco, and Pinellas counties have declared local states of emergency and intensified mosquito control efforts to combat the spread, focusing on eliminating standing water where mosquitoes breed.
• Dengue, spread by Aedes mosquitoes found in Florida, can cause symptoms ranging from fever and headache to severe complications like bleeding and death; Florida has reported one dengue-related death this year.
• Most dengue cases in the U.S. are travel-associated, but local transmission has also been reported in several states; the current outbreak's concentration around Tampa rather than South Florida is not fully understood but may be influenced by travel patterns and climate conditions.
• The CDC has allocated $800,000 in emergency funding to Florida and advises residents in affected areas to use insect repellent, wear protective clothing, and remove standing water to reduce mosquito breeding.