United States: The south-western part of the United States is now facing situations where it transitions suddenly from drought and then floods as the climate continues to warm.
Consequently, things the public has never heard of, such as valley fever, a comparatively infamous infectious disease, have been in the news lately.
More about the news
The same year, in May, around twenty thousand people attended a music festival held at Buena Vista Lake in California.Over the following months, at least 19 developed valley fever, and eight, out of which, required admission due to their infection.
This outbreak comes after a review showed that valley fever infections rose more than 800 percent in California between 2000 and 2018.
For the year 2023, over nine thousand cases of valley fever have been reported in California, and it is ranked second high-risk state in the USA.
Between April 2023- March 2024, twenty-five state agencies have provisionally reported 10,593 cases – 40 percent more than the same period the previous year.
The Conversation US has asked Jennifer Head, Simon Camponuri, and Alexandra Heaney – epidemiologists of valley fever — to explain what could be the reason behind the valley fever increase in recent years.
What is valley fever? How is it contracted?
It is an illness originating from exposure to pathogenic fungi in the Coccidioides family.
The fungi are predominant in arid soils of the Southwestern USA and some parts of Central and South America.
When the fungus has access to moisture and nutrients, it grows long, branching fungal chains throughout the soil. When the conditions are relatively dry, the chains break up to form fungal spores that become airborne when the soil is turned over in any manner.
The spores can then be released into the air and be easily inhaled, leading to a respiratory-related illness.
Rising cases of valley fever
In California’s southern San Joaquin Valley and southern Arizona, the cases are mostly seen; however, they have also emerged in other areas.
The fungi are primarily found in arid soils of the southwestern United States, as well as parts of Central and South America.