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What US states have seen flesh-eating bacteria cases this year?
New York Post • • health
Key Points:
- Florida has reported its first death in 2026 from the flesh-eating bacteria Vibrio vulnificus, marking the first such fatality in the US this year.
- Eleven additional cases of Vibrio infections have been confirmed across Florida, with the bacteria typically found in warm, coastal waters.
- The CDC notes that Vibrio infections can cause symptoms like nausea, diarrhea, fever, and blistering skin lesions, with severe infections having a mortality rate of about 20%.
- Vibrio bacteria can infect individuals through open wounds exposed to saltwater or brackish water, or by consuming contaminated raw shellfish.
- Separate from Florida, Mobile County, Alabama, reported its first vibriosis case of 2026 on April 24.
