Martin County confirms one more dengue fever case, brings the total in Florida’s Treasure Coast to four

In a follow-up to a story last week, The Florida Department of Health in Martin County has issued a health alert today for mosquito-borne illness following the confirmation of one additional case of locally acquired dengue fever in the Rio neighborhood of Jensen Beach in Martin County.

Photo/CDC-James Gathany

This new case follows three cases reported last week, two in Martin County and one in St. Lucie County.

After an investigation conducted by the Florida Department of Health in Martin and St. Lucie counties, it appears that all cases related to exposure were from local mosquitoes in the Rio area.

Dengue fever is an infectious disease carried by mosquitoes and caused by any of four related dengue viruses. This disease used to be called “break-bone fever” because it sometimes causes severe joint and muscle pain that feels like bones are breaking.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates there may be 50–100 million dengue infectionsworldwide every year. However, new research from the University of Oxford and the Wellcome Trust, using cartographic approaches, estimate there to be 390 million dengue infections per year worldwide.

There are three types of dengue fever in order of less severe to most: the typical uncomplicated dengue fever, dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHS) and dengue shock syndrome (DSS).

There is not a vaccine for dengue fever. There is no treatment for dengue, just treat the symptoms.

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