mosquito-borne illness

After a rough five days in the hospital, Hannah Heath says she's working to protect her family from mosquito-borne diseases. She encourages others to follow guidance from health officials.

In addition, the year's third case of dengue was confirmed in Miami-Dade. Sarasota, Manatee and Miami-Dade counties are under a mosquito-borne illness alert.

Hillsborough County has seen four travel-related malaria cases this year, but none acquired locally. Still, things are busy for employees working to prevent mosquito-borne diseases this rainy season.

Polk County is working to make sure the odds of malaria spreading northward from Sarasota are as low as possible.

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.

The health department says individuals who contracted the disease were bitten in the Sarasota area. This is unusual because a vast majority of U.S. cases are detected after someone travels internationally.

The Florida Department of Health provided a list of precautions with a “mosquito-borne illness” advisory. And the CDC issued a warning to doctors, especially in the South, to be aware of the possibility of infections after a fifth case was confirmed in Texas.

Four of the cases were found in Florida, while the fifth was logged in Texas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

State health officials have increased concerns that other people may become sick as Lee County becomes the latest county to detect the virus.

Duval County residents should take extra care to avoid mosquito bite, as the West Nile virus has been detected in the county, health officials say.