Texas confirms first case of mosquito-bourne virus - KFDA - NewsChannel 10 / Amarillo News, Weather, Sports
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AUSTIN - Texas health officials have confirmed Texas' first human case of a mosquito-borne virus that's been rapidly spreading through the Caribbean and parts of Latin America.
The Texas Department of State Health Services said Monday that the Williamson County resident infected with the chikungunya (chik-in-GUHN'-yuh) virus had recently returned from the Caribbean.
Health officials say infections are rarely fatal but can cause fever and severe joint pain. The virus isn't transmitted from the direct person-to-person contact, but someone with the disease can be the source of the virus for mosquitoes, which can then transmit the virus to others.
The virus has spread rapidly through the Caribbean and parts of Latin America after local transmission first started late last year. No local spread of the virus has been reported in the continental U.S.
Source: Associated Press
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