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California may be face up a particularly risky year for valley fever , health official monish . The monition play along an announcement that several cases of the fungous disease were observe among attendant of a recent outdoor medicine fete near Bakersfield .
Valley fever , medically known ascoccidioidomycosis , is a lung infection caused byCoccidioides , a fungus found in soil . The disease does not spread from mortal to person . People commonly undertake the illness by suspire in fungal spore from the surroundings , which leads to symptoms of cough , fever and truncation of breath . The infection can also stimulate dark sweats , muscle aches and a rash on the upper torso or legs .
Valley fever, a fungal disease, recently sickened a handful of people at a California music festival.
Around 5 % to 10 % of people who take hold of vale feverishness develop long - terminal figure lung trouble , and in about 1 % of people who contract it , the infection can spread out of the lung and affect the skin , bone , joints or brain . In these grievous cases , the disease can be deadly . The infection can be treated with fungicidal drug .
Now , theCalifornia Department of Public Health ( CDPH ) is warningof a " potential increase endangerment for Valley fever " in the state this year . Many of the state ’s vale fever instance are reported in the summer , so the department is aiming to raise awareness among the public and health care providers .
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California ’s dry condition , combined with big rains over the winter , could result in " increase Valley fever cases in the coming months,“Dr . Tomás Aragón , manager of the CDPH and the state ’s public health ship’s officer , said inan Aug. 1 assertion . " Individuals with lingering cough and fatigue should talk to a wellness care provider about Valley fever , particularly if they have been outdoors in dusty aviation . "
Several case of valley fever were recently flag among citizenry who traveled through Kern County to look an outdoor medicine fete called Lightning in a Bottle , the CDPHreported in late July . The festival , maintain in mid - May near Bakersfield , make more than 20,000 the great unwashed . So far , the wellness department has name five festival attendees who got valley fever , three of whom were hospitalize .
citizenry who visited Kern County and are experiencing symptom of a respiratory infection hold out longer than a hebdomad should visit a wellness care provider and ask about possible valley febrility , the CDPH said . " Be sure to mention attendance at the music festival or traveling to Kern County where Valley febricity is common , " the CDPH noted . moved fete attender can also fill out asurvey on the section ’s websiteto tending in the probe .
Symptoms of the diseasecan take one to three weeks after exposure to the fungus to show up , and they typically last weeks to calendar month , or even longer in severe case .
Most cases of vale fever account in the U.S. are in Arizona and California , with about 10,000 to 20,000 full casesreported nationwide each class . Of those , about 200 cases are fatal .
In the past few years , California has reported about 7,000 to 9,000 cases a year . As of June , there havealready been 5,370 case this year — forwards of the count for the same period in 2023 , when only 3,183 had been reported .
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" vale fever is on the rise in California , with particularly high numeral of cases report in 2023 and 2024 , " CDPH wrote in its July statement . The contagion is most common in the San Joaquin Valley and Central Coast areas of California , it noted .
Simple precautions can reduce the danger of get valley febrility in region with gamey rates of the disease , consort to the CDPH .
For case , when it ’s wordy outside and the air is dusty , hoi polloi can stay indoors and keep windows and doors closed , the CDPH recommends . People can also wet down the soil prior to digging projects to avoid shake up dust into the air . individual may also view wearing a in good order fit N95 gas helmet mask if they must be in dusty air outside in these areas .
This article is for informational role only and is not mean to offer medical advice .
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