Dengue Case Confirmed in Long Beach, California

For the second time in a month, the mosquito-transmitted dengue fever virus has been confirmed in a person in Southern California.

On November 1, 2023, the City of Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services (Health Department) reported one case of dengue in a resident who has not traveled outside the U.S.

This is the first non-travel-related case of dengue in Long Beach, which has reported five travel-related cases.

Long Beach is home to approximately 466,000 Californians.

According to the Health Department, the risk of local exposure remains low.

"The health and well-being of the community is our most important priority," commented Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson in a press release.

"We are working closely with health officials and doing everything we can to prevent more (dengue) cases. We ask that everyone do their part by removing standing water on their property to help us control the mosquitoes in our neighborhoods."

For more local information, people are encouraged to visit longbeach.gov/dengue. 

According to reports, over 4.2 million infections and about 3,000 dengue outbreak-related deaths have been reported from 79 countries/territories in the past year.

In the U.S., the state of Florida has reported the most travel-related and local dengue cases in 2023.

An earlier locally-acquired dengue case was reported in Pasadena, California.

Dengue is a disease that is spread by the bites of Aedes species mosquitoes. When a mosquito bites someone with one of dengue's four viruses in their blood, it can spread the virus to others.

The best way to protect oneself from dengue and other diseases spread by mosquitoes is to avoid mosquito bites.

Dengue vaccines are available in 2023, but there are various geographic limitations and/or testing requirements.