Officials record first case in 30 YEARS of locally acquired mosquito-borne disease

Daily Mail​

7 hours ago

New Jersey health officials reported what could be the first locally acquired case of a deadly mosquito-borne illness in the state in 34 years.
Authorities are working to confirm if a malaria case in a Morris County resident, who has not traveled internationally, was contracted in the US.
The concern surrounding the New Jersey case stems from the fear that the conditions for local transmission, an infected person, a local mosquito capable of carrying the parasite, and a susceptible public, may be converging to pose a potentially serious public health problem.
Malaria is caused by a parasite endemic to tropical and subtropical regions globally, including parts of Africa, South Asia, and South America, and is transmitted through bites from Anopheles mosquitoes.
Transmission from mosquitoes to people is a greater public health threat in those regions with warm, humid climates. However, rising temperatures across the US are creating more suitable environments for mosquitoes to thrive, increasing the potential for disease transmission.
The New Jersey case indicates that infected mosquitoes are circulating locally. While the overall risk remains low, it is no longer zero. Public health officials are containing the threat, but personal precautions such as bug spray are increasingly necessary.
A local malaria outbreak requires a specific sequence of events where a mosquito serves as the bridge between an infected traveler and a new, local person.
The traveler likely recently arrived in New Jersey from a country where the parasite is endemic, carrying it into the US, where they were bitten by a local anopheles mosquito that then bit a Morris County resident.
Each year, the US records roughly 2,000 travel-related malaria cases, resulting in five to 10 deaths. In New Jersey, about 100 such cases are diagnosed annually from returning travelers who were bitten by a mosquito that carried the parasite.
If caught early, malaria can be cured with medication, but it can turn deadly very quickly if left untreated with antimalarial drugs. A 24-hour delay can increase the risk of death by one to five times.
The unnamed Morris County, New Jersey resident had not traveled recently, but could have been bitten by a local Anopheles mosquito that picked up the malaria-causing parasite.
Malaria spreads exclusively through the bite of an infected Anopheles mosquito. It is impossible to catch it from another person through everyday contact, such as touching or sharing food.
Acting New Jersey Health Commissioner Jeff Brown said: 'While risk to the general public is low, it's important to take the necessary precautions to prevent locally acquired malaria in New Jersey.
'The most effective ways are to prevent mosquito bites in the first place and to ensure early diagnosis and treatment of malaria in returning travelers.'
Locally acquired malaria is exceedingly rare. In 2024, Florida officials confirmed seven cases of malaria in Sarasota, the first in 20 years, most likely due to the presence of Anopheles mosquitoes and the reintroduction of the disease by travelers.
And in 2023, a Texas resident who worked outdoors in Cameron County was diagnosed with malaria, the first locally acquired case there since 1994.
That same year, a case of malaria was confirmed in Arkansas, and it was the first locally acquired case in the state in at least 40 years.
Malaria causes flu-like symptoms such as fever, chills, and fatigue, appearing seven to 30 days after exposure. While curable with prescription drugs, it is fatal without prompt diagnosis and treatment.
Even with treatment, mortality rates remain high, between 15 percent and 20 percent.
It is a potentially fatal illness, especially for high-risk individuals, including young children, pregnant women, older adults, and those with a weakened immune system or no spleen.
Caused primarily by the Plasmodium falciparum parasite, most common in Africa, malaria can lead to severe complications within hours of the first symptoms.
Malaria causes severe illness by destroying red blood cells, a process that can rapidly deplete their numbers and lead to life-threatening anemia.
A critical lack of oxygen-carrying cells prevents the body's muscles and organs from functioning properly, resulting in feelings of intense drowsiness, weakness, and faintness.
A major killer of children under five in places where malaria is endemic is severe malarial anemia, which frequently demands blood transfusions.
The complication drove an estimated 627,000 worldwide malaria deaths in 2020, primarily affecting young children in West Africa.
Malaria can also cause severe neurological problems, most commonly cerebral malaria, as a result of infected red blood cells becoming sticky and clogging tiny blood vessels in the brain, blocking oxygen delivery.
At the same time, the body's intense immune response damages the protective blood-brain barrier, causing it to leak fluid and leading to brain swelling.
Beyond cerebral malaria, the illness can also trigger a range of other neurological complications, even after the initial infection has cleared, including Guillain-Barré syndrome, cerebellar ataxia, and a post-malaria neurological syndrome that can involve confusion, seizures, or psychosis.
The CDC has dubbed the mosquito the world's deadliest animal. They spread an array of deadly diseases in addition to malaria, including dengue, West Nile, yellow fever, Zika, chikungunya and lymphatic filariasis, a parasitic infection in which adult worms live and reproduce in the lymphatic system.
Their capacity to transmit a wide array of devastating illnesses, such as malaria, dengue, West Nile virus, yellow fever, Zika, and chikungunya, results in millions of global deaths every year.