Florida health officials have placed Broward County under a mosquito-borne illness alert this month as dengue virus cases spread. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Broward County \u2013 home to Fort Lauderdale \u2013 joins Miami-Dade County as the illness continues to spread. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Florida Department of Health<\/a> reported two cases of locally acquired dengue in Broward County in its July 30-Aug. 5 arbovirus surveillance report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There have been 10 cases of locally acquired dengue reported in the Sunshine State this year, with most in Miami-Dade County. The majority of the 10 were reported in July.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Ten cases have been serotyped by PCR,” the department wrote.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “In 2022, there were two locally acquired dengue cases,” the department in Broward County said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There were nearly 200 cases this year reported in individuals in Florida with a history of travel to a dengue-endemic area in the two weeks before onset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The department noted that 10 of those cases were reported in non-Florida residents and that one case met the criteria for severe dengue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dengue is spread by the bite of an infected mosquito<\/a> and is not normally present in Florida.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, infected travelers can bring the virus back to Florida mosquitoes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n