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Mosquitoes Kill A Third Person In Connecticut
By
Claire Lampen
Published Oct 2, 2019
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U.S. Department of Agriculture
By
Claire Lampen
Published Oct 2, 2019
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For a few more hours, at least, it still feels like summer in the tristate area, meaning you might be more inclined than usual to sit outside and enjoy a refreshing treat today. We won't advise you not to chase that dream, but please, either wear bug spray or swaddle yourself in a sweatsuit because the mosquitoes are not to be trusted. Over in Connecticut, a third person has died from a mosquito-transmitted virus, while a fourth person has been hospitalized. True, New York City is not Connecticut, but constant vigilance nonetheless.
The virus in question is Eastern Equine Encephalitis, and as of last week, it had killed two people in Old Lyme and East Lyme, respectively. That number alone was twice the national fatality rate for EEE in 2018, and now that a third person has died — a 60-year-old patient from East Haddam — officials are rattled. According to the Hartford Courant, state epidemiologist Matthew Cartter said Tuesday that all four of the state's patients to date had probably been exposed to the virus during peak mosquito season, between August 11th and September 8th.
"We have never had anything like this happen," Cartter told NBC New York. "Before 2013, we never had a human case of Eastern Equine Encephalitis."
EEE is fatal in about 30 percent of cases, and again, rare — as in seven-cases-reported-nationwide-per-year rare. Still, it can cause serious complications including neurological problems that worsen with time. EEE typically announces itself with flu-like symptoms — malaise, chills, fever, joint and muscle pain — that come on quickly and last for a week or two. But brain swelling can also occur a few days in, accompanied by headaches, irritability, restlessness, drowsiness, loss of appetite, vomiting, diarrhea, discoloration of the skin, and convulsions. Comas are also possible.
Humans get this typically avian virus from mosquitoes, which act as a bridge vector. Last week, Cornell Professor of Entomology Laura Harrington told Gothamist that, although EEE-carrying mosquitoes had been identified on Long Island, New York City residents do not need to panic about the virus despite its close proximity. Although it's "definitely an unusual year" for EEE, she said, most mosquitoes "travel no more than one to two miles, and often much shorter distances," because they are "weak fliers." So there is a low likelihood of a mosquito making the trip all the way to NYC from any of the 17 Connecticut towns where its brethren have tested positive for EEE.
Still, mosquito season approximately lasts from April to October, meaning we must still wait a few more weeks for all the vampire bugs to die off in the first big frost. Please just cross your fingers that we will all be able to wear sweaters again very very soon.
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mosquitoes
connecticut
mosquito
disease
Claire Lampen
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