Just days after reporting on the state’s second human case of the potentially fatal mouse-borne Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) virus, Massachusetts officials announced another human case on Wednesday, marking for the third time this year that a resident of Bay State has contracted the dangerous disease.
The Massachusetts Department of Health in a press release announced the third case in a man in his 90s. The man was exposed to the virus in Plymouth County, according to officials.
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“As a result, the EEE risk level in Halifax has risen to critical levels, and the EEE risk level in East Bridgewater and Hanson has risen to a high. “All three municipalities are in Plymouth County,” he said.
Health officials did not detail the man’s condition.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describes EEE as “one of a group of mosquito-borne viruses that can cause inflammation in the brain (encephalitis).”
Symptoms typically appear about four to 10 days after a bite, with severe cases continuing after encephalitis. Patients may experience high fever, stiff neck, severe headache and lack of energy. About one-third of patients contracting EEE will die, and there is no specific treatment for the virus. Health officials said the only way to protect against the virus was to prevent it from being bitten by mosquitoes.
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The man’s case comes after two other confirmed EEE cases in the state, the first of which involved a resident under the age of 18 was exposed in Plymouth County, while the second was reported in a woman in her 60s from Hampden County .
“EEE is rare, but it is a serious illness and concern for public health, and we remind residents of the need to protect themselves from mosquito bites as EEE activity increases,” said Monica Bharel, Commission on Public Health, in a statement. at announcement of the first of the state lawsuits.
“The single best prevention tool prevents mosquito bites by using distance, wearing long sleeves and pants, weather permitting, and preventing outdoor activity between the hours of dusk and breakfast in the most risky areas,” she added. ta.
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On average, five to 10 cases of EEE are reported each year, the CDC says. Last year, however, parts of the nation experienced the worst EEE outbreak in more than 50 years, according to a report at the time.
Experts said the outbreak may have been caused by the warmer temperature being less than temperature because mosquitoes bloom in hot weather. It was also possible that a new strain of EEE to the northeast of the country was carried by birds – which are immune to the virus but pass on to mosquitoes when the insects feed on it – that migrated from Florida, a epidemiologist of the state in Massachusetts at the time.
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In 2019, Massachusetts saw a dozen cases of EEE and six deaths, officials said.
