Mosquito-Borne Illness

One Florida physician says climate change needs to be part of the medical school curriculum in the U.S.

With Hurricane Helene flooding Pasco’s coastline, and Milton dumping over 15 inches of rain on the county’s interior, officials said the situation was especially inviting for Aedes aegypti.

Anyone who got sick with COVID-19 during the summer wave in South Florida has some protection against a future infection, but not full protection against germs spreading in fall and winter. Infectious disease experts recommend what shots to get now.

Part of the state’s surveillance program is keeping track of flooded areas, as pools of accumulated rainfall are prone to becoming mosquito breeding grounds.

There’s a few easy ways to ensure that the risk of contracting a mosquito-borne illness goes way down. A good first step is to regularly replace standing water, like what may be found in birdbaths, with fresh water.

The alert comes days after a locally acquired case was ID's in Hillsborough County. The virus remains less common in the continental U.S., but there have been three times more cases than at this point last year.

Symptoms of dengue fever, a mosquito-borne illness, include a high fever, severe headache, eye pain and muscle and joint pain. lt is rarely fatal.

How do Aedes female mosquitos find the perfect site to lay their eggs? FIU researchers find they rely on one another for good reviews of breeding sites.

There have been 10 cases in South Florida this year. Eight in Miami-Dade and two in Broward.

Sarasota and Manatee counties remain under mosquito-borne illness alert. Polk and Orange counties are under advisories. Meantime, a third case of dengue was confirmed in Miami-Dade.

Six people in the county have contracted the disease in recent weeks from mosquitoes in the area, officials say. The state remains under a mosquito-borne illness alert.

On this week's Florida Roundup, we discuss a few key laws going into effect Saturday, including immigration reform, permitless carry and parental rights. Plus, what are local officials doing to mitigate the risks of rising temperatures?