United States: In recent reports from the Department of Health, a death has been confirmed from very infectious eastern equine encephalitis virus.
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The health department identified the victim as a 70-year-old Chittenden County resident who was hospitalized in late August and died from illness in September.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the first death from the virus, which was reported back in 2012, also confirmed the test results of the disease this week.
What more are the officials stating?
The announcement has taken Vermont’s total human confirmed EEE count to two this year. The first person, whose infection was confirmed in early August, recovered from the disease later. The two EEE infections were the first seen in the state since 2012.
The same can be said of other New England towns throughout the duration of the season. About three-quarters of people who get EEEvirus do not show symptoms, but those who develop signs may experience flu-like symptoms with high fever, chills, and muscle and joint pains.
About 5% of people who are infected become severely ill with EEE disease, which involves encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain.
Vermont’s health commissioner, Dr. Mark Levine, said he is extending his deepest sympathies to the man’s family.
According to Levine, “EEE is a funny kind of virus where there are a couple of years in a row where it is very active and is present and then will disappear off the radar for a while. Unless you are on the top of Mount Mansfield, most places have not experienced that hard frost yet, and it may not actually occur in the next week or two.”
He said that while there is less of a chance of getting sick now, the country is not yet through the tunnel completely, as mynbc5.com reported.
Levine said that he was not struck by EEE’s second fatality; it has become the nature of the world where temperatures are soaring globally, and Vermont experienced floods during summer.
He says it is the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes. EEE has no human vaccine or cure; it is this that causes many individuals to avoid sleeping outside or in the open. Anyone presenting symptoms should contact their health care provider.
Authorities insisted that people were less likely to fall sick now than they were in August and urged those living in high-risk areas to stay cautious, especially at night.