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| |  CDC Report Suggests Possible Reemergence of Dengue Fever in United States ATLANTA -- July 14, 2010 -- An estimated 5% of the Key West, Florida population -- over 1,000 people -- showed evidence of recent exposure to dengue virus in 2009, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Florida Department of Health. After 3 initial locally acquired cases of dengue were reported in 2009, scientists from the CDC in Atlanta, Georgia, and the Florida Department of Health in Tallahassee, Florida, conducted a study to estimate the potential exposure of the Key West population to dengue virus. "We're concerned that if dengue gains a foothold in Key West, it will travel to other southern cities where the mosquito that transmits dengue is present, like Miami," said Harold Margolis, Dengue Branch at the CDC. Since 1980, a few locally acquired US cases have been confirmed along the Texas-Mexico border, which coincided with large outbreaks in neighboring Mexican cities. In recent years, there has been an increase in epidemic dengue in the tropics and subtropics, including Puerto Rico. "These cases represent the reemergence of dengue fever in Florida and elsewhere in the United States after 75 years," Margolis said. "These people had not travelled outside of Florida, so we need to determine if these cases are an isolated occurrence or if dengue has once again become endemic in the continental United States." On September 1, 2009, a New York state physician notified the Monroe County, Florida, Health Department and the Florida Department of Health of a suspected dengue case in a New York state resident whose only recent travel was to Key West. In the next 2 weeks, 2 dengue infections in Key West residents without recent travel were reported and confirmed. By the end of 2009, 27 cases had been identified. For the study, a total of 240 blood samples were collected from randomly selected households in Key West and tested for the presence of virus or evidence of a previous dengue infection. Among the samples, 5% had dengue active in their systems or had dengue antibodies, suggesting that the disease had been experienced within the previous 3 months of the study. Key West residents, physicians, and hospitals were also enlisted in a surveillance program to identify new cases, and mosquitoes were tested for the virus. CDC and the Florida Department of Health continue to monitor cases in and around Key West. As of the end of June 2010, there have been 12 additional cases of locally acquired dengue reported from Key West and surrounding areas.
SOURCE: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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