Deadly EEE Virus Found After Mosquitoes Test Positive in Connecticut: Officials

Connecticut wellness officials issued warnings to residents aft the perchance deadly mosquito-borne eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) was detected recently.

Mosquitoes that were recovered successful the Pachaug State Forest successful Voluntown connected Sept. 23 tested affirmative for the virus, said the state’s Department of Health past week. The authorities past issued an alert to residents successful the southeastern information of Connecticut to support themselves from mosquito bites.

“We promote residents of southeastern Connecticut to instrumentality elemental measures specified arsenic wearing mosquito repellent and covering bare skin, particularly during dusk and dawn erstwhile mosquitoes are astir active,” Public Health Department Commissioner Manisha Juthani stated.

Tests revealed that the mosquitoes were known to some provender connected birds and mammals, respectively known arsenic culiseta melanura and ochlerotatus canadensis.

“EEE microorganism is unpredictable and varies from twelvemonth to twelvemonth but we observe the microorganism successful mosquitoes during astir years,” Philip M. Armstrong, a virologist, told USA TODAY. “Major illness outbreaks are little communal and hap astir erstwhile each 5 years successful Connecticut. The past clip we had an outbreak occurred successful 2019 and progressive 4 humans cases (3 fatalities) and 6 equine cases successful eastbound Connecticut.”

According to authorities wellness officials, though EEE is rare, it tin origin superior illness.

“The microorganism cannot beryllium passed from idiosyncratic to idiosyncratic oregon from horses to humans. The hazard of mosquito-transmitted diseases similar the EEE microorganism usually increases done the precocious summertime and aboriginal fall. Mosquitoes are progressive until the archetypal dense frost,” said the Department of Public Health. It said that residents successful southeastern Connecticut should usage mosquito repellent, and they should deterioration agelong pants, long-sleeved shirts, shoes, and socks erstwhile outdoors for longer periods of clip outdoors oregon erstwhile mosquitoes are much active.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), meanwhile, said that symptoms see fever, malaise, chills, seizures, a coma, and vomiting.

The microorganism is fatal successful 25 percent to 50 percent of cases and tin permission others with significant, semipermanent wellness problems, the CDC says. People aged 50 oregon older and those nether the property of 15 are astatine the top hazard of decease oregon terrible disease, officials said.

There is nary vaccine oregon peculiar attraction for EEE, officials say. A representation published connected the CDC’s website shows astir of the cases were reported successful New England arsenic good arsenic Michigan, Florida, and Georgia betwixt 2010 and 2019.

The CDC notes that the largest summation successful EEE cases occurred successful 2019 with 38 confirmed cases, namely on the East Coast and Midwest. Nineteen radical died from the microorganism successful that clip period, the CDC adds.