By NewsDesk @infectiousdiseasenews
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) announced the fifth confirmed human case of Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) virus infection of the year in a female in her 60s who was exposed to EEE in Plymouth County.
More than 95 percent of the EEE cases that have occurred in Massachusetts since 2000 have been exposed to the virus before mid-September. Mosquito populations are declining although some risk will continue until the first hard frost.
All residents are reminded to use mosquito repellent any time they are outside, and those in high and critical risk communities are advised to schedule their outdoor activity to avoid the dusk to dawn hours to reduce exposure to the mosquitoes most likely to spread EEE.
EEE is a rare but potentially fatal disease that can affect people of all ages. There have already been four other human cases identified this year. In 2019, there were 12 human cases of EEE in Massachusetts with 6 deaths.
- Chikungunya outbreak in Chad nears 25,000 cases
- Indiana: Probable EEE case reported in LaPorte County
- Salmonella: La Aldea Store and Restaurant Outbreak
- Canada: Salmonella outbreak linked to onions eclipse 500 cases
- Typhoid vaccine: Vi-DT conjugate vaccine is safe and immunogenic in children 6-23 months
- Argentina: 12 trichinosis cases reported in Córdoba
- Michigan: Suspect Eastern Equine Encephalitis case reported in Barry County
