dengue

There have been above-average numbers in Florida of travel-related cases of the mosquito-borne disease dengue. Now, control groups are working to make sure the disease doesn’t become endemic.

Health experts anticipated 214 dengue travel cases brought into the state from other countries. So far, the count is at 859, about four times the predictions. Here’s what that means for the future.

Symptoms of dengue fever include a high fever, severe headache, eye pain and muscle and joint pain. It is rarely fatal.

The state health department says it is treating the affected area for mosquitoes, though it did not specify where in the county the case was reported.

A mosquito control official says the county's last locally acquired case probably was in the 1930s. That change this month when two were reported in Lockhart, in northwest Orange.

To learn more about mosquito precautions, here's an informative conversation with representatives from the Lee County Mosquito Control District.

Case counts are skyrocketing in countries like Brazil and Peru and the virus is popping up in new turf, from Florida to Iran. What's the cause? And what's the solution?

In response to the new cases, the Florida Keys Mosquito Control District is increasing its mosquito control tactics in Key Largo and Upper Matecumbe Key.

State travel dengue cases are higher than what experts predicted for the year. Most cases have come from people visiting from Brazil and Cuba, which are undergoing historically large outbreaks.

Most people with dengue will show no signs of infection or experience only mild symptoms, but in rare cases infections can become severe and potentially fatal.