Health officials issued a warning after five cases of malaria were identified in Florida and Texas in people who had not recently traveled overseas, sparking concerns about local transmission.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cited a risk of increased “imported malaria cases” amid a busy summer travel season.
5 people contract malaria within U.S. borders — first such cases in two decades.
Malaria kills more than 400,000 people around the world every year, mostly young children. In 2021, malaria killed an estimated 619,000 people and caused 247 million people to become ill across 84 countries.
Even in the United States, where malaria was eliminated 70 years ago, the disease continues to threaten the health of U.S. travelers, U.S. military personnel, and U.S. citizens living abroad. Typically, about 2,000 malaria cases are diagnosed each year in the United States.
“Ticks and mosquitoes can be more than just a nuisance,” said a CDC advisory about how to ‘fight the bite.’ “They can spread germs that make you sick. Fight the bite by taking steps to prevent tick- and mosquito-borne disease.”
Almost everyone has been bitten by a mosquito, tick, or flea. These can be vectors for spreading pathogens (germs). A person who gets bitten by a vector and gets sick has a vector-borne disease, like dengue, Zika, Lyme, or plague.
Between 2004 and 2016, more than 640,000 cases of these diseases were reported, and 9 new germs spread by bites from infected mosquitoes and ticks were discovered or introduced in the US. state and local health departments and vector control organizations are the nation’s main defense against this increasing threat.
Yet, 84% of local vector control organizations lack at least 1 of 5 core vector control competencies. Better control of mosquitoes and ticks is needed to protect people from these costly and deadly diseases.
Vector-borne diseases are on the rise in the United States.
Mosquito and tick bites can spread viruses, bacteria, and parasites that cause several different diseases. Some of the most common vector-borne diseases in the U.S. include:
Mosquito and tick bites can happen anywhere, even in your own backyard. Certain groups of people are at a higher risk for disease than others due to behaviors or geographic location that put them in contact with ticks and mosquitoes.
Additionally, certain groups of people are more likely to develop severe disease, such as older adults and those who have weakened immune systems. Understanding your risk of vector-borne diseases can help you know when and where to expect ticks and mosquitoes.
The most effective way to avoid getting sick from viruses spread by mosquitoes when at home and during travel is to prevent mosquito bites.
Mosquito bites can be more than just annoying and itchy. They can spread viruses that make you sick or, in rare cases, cause death. Although most kinds of mosquitoes are just nuisance mosquitoes, some kinds of mosquitoes in the United States and around the world spread viruses that can cause disease.
As the CDC noted in its alert, malaria infections in the U.S. aren’t unheard of. The country saw about 2,000 annual malaria cases every year before the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, cases in the U.S. are almost always found in people who traveled outside of the country to regions where malaria transmission is more common. The five infections in Florida and Texas being caught locally indicates indicate mosquitoes acquired the parasite and spread them to people.
“It can get out of control really quickly if these cases go undetected for long periods of time. And vivax, some strains can be very non-virulent, so people can be infected and not really realize they’re infected,” said John Adams, professor at the University of South Florida College of Public Health.
Effective treatments and mitigation strategies against malaria are available in the U.S, though treatment for the disease can be unpleasant. One expert worries these cases are indicative of a larger problem.