There are now two more confirmed cases of the mosquito-borne virus, chikungunya, in Florida with two residents testing positive for the new disease.
The Florida Department of Health in Tallahassee said the two victims had recently been in Haiti. The newly discovered mosquito virus is said to have originated in the Caribbean and is being brought to the U.S. by residents who spent time in the island region.
"Avoiding mosquito bites is the key to preventing infection with chikungunya and other mosquito-borne diseases," said Claudia Blackburn, MPH, RNC, CPM, Health Officer. "Floridians and visitors are encouraged to take precautionary measures to help reduce the chance of being bitten. Remember to drain and cover."
There were 18 previously confirmed cases in Florida, according to health officials.
Health and vector control officials across the country are scurrying to release public information about the disease and to warn residents about its symptoms.
While not a nationally reportable disease as yet, federal health officials are asking states to note cases and incidents, said Christine Pearson, at the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases.
According to officials, a newly infected person is contagious during the acute phase of the illness and would have to be bitten by a mosquito for the disease to spread to others.
The news comes as the chikungunya virus is steadily making its way across the U.S. The newest mosquito-borne disease has now hit Rhode Island, Tennessee and North Carolina as well as Florida.
Last week news reports claim Tennessee officials confirmed the state's first case. Officials state there is no evidence that the virus is spreading from residents to other residents and no transmission incidents have been noted.
"It will be more difficult for the virus to establish itself here," said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn.
As Tech Times reported last Friday, the Pan American Health Organization is reporting that most of the new cases stem from Latin regions of the Caribbean, with Guadeloupe, Martinique and part of Saint Martin also included. The number of suspected related deaths is at 14.
Tennessee officials say multiple residents who have traveled to the Caribbean are showing signs of the illness that is spread by daytime-biting mosquitoes. Symptoms, which typically show up three to seven days after being bit, include headache, chills, fever, sensitivity to light, rash, vomiting and severe joint pain.
Some officials are predicting the virus will become as prevalent as the mosquito-transmitted West Nile virus as it's already beat earlier annual reports in the U.S. with 41 reported cases this year. All reports are related to U.S. citizens who traveled to Caribbean nations.
According to one report, the virus has rapidly spread in the Caribbean in recent months, infecting thousands.
Florida is the hardest hit as yet, with 25 reported cases, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is tracking the virus across many states between California and New York, as well as in the Virgin Islands.
According to the Caribbean Public Health Agency, confirmed and suspected cases have hit 135,651, a big spike since the count on June 2 of 100,000. News reports say the virus has been confirmed in 20 countries and the biggest outbreak of suspected infections is in the Dominican Republic.
