Another Locally Acquired Dengue Case Reported In San Diego County

SAN DIEGO, CA — San Diego County health officials are investigating a second case of locally acquired dengue virus.

A Vista resident became sick with the mosquito-transmitted disease, but did not travel to an area where the virus is common, according to the county. The case is not related to the first case of locally acquired dengue that was confirmed earlier this month in Escondido.

"As always, the county is closely monitoring these recent cases of locally acquired dengue and quickly responding to prevent the spread of illness," said Dr. Seema Shah, the county's interim deputy public health officer. "While the risk of getting dengue continues to remain low, we are paying attention to increases in cases of dengue in California and across the U.S."

Dengue is a tropical viral disease that is not commonly found in the U.S. Since the invasive Aedes mosquitoes were first detected in the county in 2014, there has been only one other locally acquired case of dengue in the county.

No additional locally acquired cases have been identified, although there have been 53 reported cases of travel-related dengue this year in the county.

To prevent the disease from spreading, County Vector Control will be spraying around about 60 homes in Vista. Treatments started on Friday and will continue through Tuesday.

Dengue is spread by mosquitoes when a mosquito bites an infected person and then feeds on another person.

It can take four to seven days for someone who is bitten by a mosquito infected with dengue to start feeling symptoms. The most common symptoms are fever, chills, aches and pains, nausea, vomiting and rashes.

Symptoms can be moderate and last two to seven days. Most people recover after about a week. Symptoms can also become severe, including shock and respiratory distress. Some cases may require hospitalization and can even lead to death. There are no specific medicines to treat dengue.