‘They’re not going to live normally’: A devastating disease has surged in Calif.

By Gillian Mohney

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    CALIFORNIA (KSBW) — In just 25 years, cases of an uncommon but potentially devastating disease have climbed more than 1,200% in California.

This month, the California Department of Public Health reported that Valley fever cases are on track to surpass last year’s record number of over 12,500 cases.

The infection, caused when people inhale spores of the naturally occurring Coccidioides fungus, made up fewer than 1,000 cases back in 2000 in California.

Shaun Yang, the director for molecular microbiology and pathogen genomics at the UCLA Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, said relatively mild and wet winters in much of California mean the fungus can thrive underground without being killed off by frost.

“This kind of very wet and dry pattern definitely is perfect for this fungus to grow,” Yang told SFGATE.

In recent years, climate change has supercharged years of drought and rainfall in California, and Yang says these changes may be a big reason for the spike in cases. In dry weather, the spores spread as dry dust and soil are kicked up because of construction, agriculture or wind.

“I think climate change is the main reason to explain this type of dramatic explosion,” Yang told SFGATE. “I don’t think anything else can explain this type of phenomenon.”

Yang said his lab used to see about one case of Valley fever a month, but now it often sees five cases per month, including an occasional pediatric case of the infection.

“When children get this kind of very severe [Valley fever,] it’s very devastating,” Yang said, explaining that infection can disseminate and spread to the bone in children, requiring chronic treatments. “They’re not going to live normally.”

Dr. John Galgiani, the director for the University of Arizona Valley Fever Center for Excellence, said one explanation for the increase in cases is that health officials have streamlined some of the reporting process. Galgiani pointed out that patients who tested positive for Valley fever used to have to be tracked down to confirm their symptoms before their cases were reported to the state, and in recent years, that requirement has been loosened.

“The actual impact of the disease is probably not as great a change as the numbers appear,” Galgiani told SFGATE.

Galgiani said while cases have increased, they are still variable, and occasionally, the number of annual cases has sometimes dipped below previous levels.

“The fact that it looks higher now doesn’t mean it’s going to be even higher next year, and then higher after that,” he said.

Galgiani did echo Yang’s concern that changes in climate could push the fungus into new areas of the country.

“There’s estimates that climate change, or the long-term effect of climate change will increase the distribution of the infection across the western United States, all the way to the Canadian border,” he said.

Valley fever can cause severe fatigue, cough, fever, night sweats and muscle pain, and it can last weeks to months. In severe cases, the spores can disseminate in the body, infecting the bones, brain or skin. In these cases, a person may need to be on anti-fungal medications for the rest of their lives, according to Yang.

Valley fever can also be deadly, with 1 out of 10 people hospitalized for the disease dying from it, according to the California Department of Public Health.

While some people will have severe symptoms, Yang said a majority of people will either not get sick or have mild symptoms if they come into contact with the spores. Since so many people do not get diagnosed, the actual number of cases is likely about 10 to 18 times higher than what is reported.

The people most at risk for developing Valley fever are those who live or work in agriculture or construction in areas where it’s endemic. People over 60, pregnant people, people who have diabetes and those with compromised immune systems are at higher risk of having serious or debilitating symptoms if they get sick.

Galgiani said if you think you could be at risk and start to get symptoms, you should get tested.

“The recommendation is, if you have pneumonia in Bakersfield, for example, or other endemic places, or if you visited there, you should be tested,” he said.

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