A disease most Americans have never heard of could soon become more prevalent if dengue, a flu-like illness that can turn deadly, continues to expand into temperate climates and increase in severity, according to a new commentary by Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, and David M. Morens, M.D., Fauci's senior scientific advisor. Their commentary appears in the January 9 and 16 double issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Dengue (pronounced "DENG-ee") is caused by any of four related viruses transmitted to humans by the mosquitoes Aedes albopictus (nicknamed "Asian tiger mosquito") and Aedes aegypti. First seen in the United States in 1985, Ae. albopictus has been found in 36 states, while Ae. aegypti has been found in several southern states. Experience elsewhere in the world shows that where these mosquitoes go, the disease usually follows.
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