It’s already a record-breaking year for dengue infections in Central and South America, with almost 10 million cases diagnosed so far. Now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning of an increased risk of the mosquito-borne virus in the U.S.
, as summer weather and vacation travel heat up. This week, the CDC told health care providers to be on the lookout and to test for cases, especially among people with fevers who have recently returned from places where dengue is surging. “Currently, there is no evidence of an outbreak in the continental U.
S.,” says Gabriela Paz-Bailey , chief of the CDC’s Dengue Branch, based in San Juan, Puerto Rico. “But around the world, dengue cases have risen at an alarming rate.
Particularly in the summer months, we are expecting people to travel more to areas where dengue is common, and this could lead to more local transmission in the United States.” The U.S.
has seen around 2,200 cases so far this year. And about 1,500 of those cases have been locally acquired, mostly in Puerto Rico, where dengue virus is considered endemic – that is, in constant, continuous circulation. Puerto Rico declared a public health emergency over dengue in March, after cases rose quickly at an unseasonably early time.
Locally acquired cases have also been reported in the U.S. Virgin Islands and Florida this year, Paz-Bailey says.
To be clear, the CDC does not expect to see large outbreaks across the U.S. this summer.
Instead, the agency is .
