Florida officials are investigating what could be the first homegrown, mosquito-borne Zika case in the continental United States. But an Orlando physician believes a local outbreak won’t hit the state as hard as other countries.
State officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are currently looking into the case in Miami-Dade County. So far cases of the virus in the states have come from sexual contact, or victims visiting other countries. And it’s notable Florida has lasted so long without active transmission, says Orlando physician Antonio Crespo.
“This is what we in the health community have been expecting all along. And it was said that the summer was the highest risk because of the increase in the mosquito population with the rainy season,” he said.
Crespo believes local outbreaks in the state will be much smaller than in other countries like Brazil.
“The sanitary conditions here in Florida are significantly better than in other countries where the virus has spread violently,” he said.
The virus hits hardest in low-income, urban areas with dense populations, a lot of standing water, and inadequate housing. Puerto Rico leads the country with 3,700 cases, but Florida has more cases than any other state, with 334.
