Current:Home > MarketsMaryland reports state’s first case of locally acquired malaria strain in over 40 years-LoTradeCoin
Maryland reports state’s first case of locally acquired malaria strain in over 40 years
View Date:2024-12-23 18:22:51
A Maryland resident has tested positive for the state's first case of a locally acquired strain of malaria in more than 40 years, officials confirmed Friday.
The unnamed person, who was hospitalized and is now recovering, did not recently travel out of the country or to other states with recent locally acquired malaria cases, the Maryland Department of Health said in a statement.
“Malaria was once common in the United States, including in Maryland, but we have not seen a case in Maryland that was not related to travel in over 40 years,” Maryland Department of Health Secretary Laura Herrera Scott said in the statement. “We are taking this very seriously and will work with local and federal health officials to investigate this case.”
Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease caused by a parasite. People with malaria often experience fever, chills, and flu-like illness. Left untreated, they may develop severe complications and die.
Symptoms usually appear seven to 30 days after an infective bite and include high fever, chills, body aches, diarrhea and vomiting, Maryland health department officials said.
About 2,000 cases of malaria are reported annually nationwide, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But he “vast majority” of cases in the country occur in people traveling abroad, the CDC noted. The risk of locally acquired malaria is "extremely low" in the US, according to the agency.
How to protect yourself from malaria
Maryland health department officials recommend these steps to protect yourself from malaria:
- Use insect repellent with DEET on exposed skin.
- Wear loose-fitting, long sleeved clothing when possible.
- Keep windows and doors closed or covered with screens.
- Empty standing water at least once a week to stop mosquitoes from laying eggs.
- Repair broken screening on windows, doors, porches and patios.
- Before travelling, learn about the health risks and precautions for malaria and other diseases for your destination.
- Before travelling internationally, ask your health care provider for current recommendations on prescription medications to prevent malaria.
- If you have traveled to an area where malaria transmission occurs more often and you develop symptoms like fever, chills, headache, body aches, and fatigue, seek urgent medical care and tell your health care provider that you have traveled.
veryGood! (92)
Related
- Sports are a must-have for many girls who grow up to be leaders
- An inside look at Israel's ground assault in Gaza
- Amazon takes another shot at health care, this one a virtual care service that costs $9 per month
- Back in China 50 years after historic trip, a Philadelphia Orchestra violinist hopes to build ties
- Former North Carolina labor commissioner becomes hospital group’s CEO
- Alex Galchenyuk video: NHL player threatens officers, utters racial slurs in bodycam footage
- Get in Formation: Another Buzz-Worthy Teaser for Beyoncé's Renaissance Film Is Here
- Commission weighs whether to discipline Illinois judge who reversed rape conviction
- Brian Austin Green’s Fiancée Sharna Burgess Celebrates Megan Fox’s Pregnancy News
- Bleu Royal diamond, a gem at the top of its class, sells for nearly $44 million at Christie's auction
Ranking
- 2 credit unions in Mississippi and Louisiana are planning to merge
- Kim Kardashian’s SKIMS Launches the Ultimate Holiday Shop Featuring Patrick Mahomes and Family
- CMA Awards 2023 full winners list: Lainey Wilson, Luke Combs, Chris Stapleton and more
- ‘Greed and corruption': Federal jury convicts veteran DEA agents in bribery conspiracy
- Jason Kelce Offers Up NSFW Explanation for Why Men Have Beards
- No, Dior didn't replace Bella Hadid with an Israeli model over her comments on the Israel-Hamas war
- Ohio State's Ryan Day denies giving Michigan's signs to Purdue before Big Ten title game
- Japanese automaker Honda reports its 3Q profit jumped on strong demand at home and in the US
Recommendation
-
Suspected shooter and four others are found dead in three Kansas homes, police say
-
From Hollywood to auto work, organized labor is flexing its muscles. Where do unions stand today?
-
Melissa Rivers Is Engaged to Attorney Steve Mitchel
-
An industrial robot crushed a worker to death at a vegetable packing plant in South Korea
-
Charles Hanover: Caution, Bitcoin May Be Entering a Downward Trend!
-
Nation’s first openly gay governor looking to re-enter politics after nearly 20 years
-
Cheetahs change hunting habits on hot days, increasing odds of unfriendly encounters with other big cats, study finds
-
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak hospitalized in Mexico