California is heading for another year of record cases of valley fever caused by fungal spores associated with drought and precipitation cycles.
State health officials have reported 3,123 cases of valley fever. This is about twice the 10-year average for the first quarter. Cases ranged from 801 in 2016 to 3,011 last year.
Most people infected with the fungus will not experience symptoms and their bodies will naturally fight the infection. However, people suffering from symptoms often find it difficult to recognize symptoms as they resemble the onset of COVID or the flu, further complicating their efforts to deal with the disease.
The disease is caused by inhaling the spores of coccidioid, a fungal pathogen that thrives in the state’s arid and dusty areas. Fungi are released when growing dry soil is blocked.
“We’ve seen a lot of fungal infections,” said George R. Thompson, a medical professor at UC Davis School of Medicine and an expert on invasive fungal infections.
Dua Ge Yang, a spokesman for the state Department of Public Health, said drought and precipitation patterns have shown that they play a key role in the number of valley fever incidents in California. “A few years of drought in California, followed by wet winters, followed by dry summers, will result in an increase in cases of valley fever over the next two years.
She said 2023 represented such a scenario and recorded 12,637 cases as predicted.
“Table fever is rising in California,” she said.
The 2025 figures are much higher than the previously recorded first quarter, but Yang said health officials cannot predict whether it will remain a record year. She also said that demographic issues such as age, gender and race cannot be reported yet, as all figures for 2024 and 2025 are considered preliminary.
In addition to the patterns of rain and drought, studies show that other factors can play a role in valley fever events, including soil damage, such as construction activities, wild fires, and even archaeological excavations.
Construction workers, firefighters and archaeologists working in the state’s arid, arid areas are particularly at increased risk of contracting illness.
At least 19 people fell ill last year. Includes several people who reported severe effects including pneumonia-like symptoms, rashes, headaches and fatigue.
Festival organizers will be holding events at the same location again this year. , organizers try to reduce dust by applying water to the ground and holding it in place, adding artificial turf for dancing, reducing the number of electric vehicles used by staff around the site, and placing additional wood chips to control the dust.
As most people clear the infection themselves, the true number of people suffering is unknown. If a person’s immune system is unable to clear the infection and is left untreated, it can lead to death or permanent disability.
Treatment varies depending on the severity, but antifungal drugs such as fluconazole (diflucan) and itraconazole (spolanox, torsura) are the most common drugs used. However, they have serious side effects such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, hair loss, dry skin, dry mouth, cracked lips, etc.
Although there have been recent cases in several Central and Southern California counties, Monterey numbers have been bulging.
In 2023, 22 cases were reported in Central California County in the first quarter. This year, the number is 217.
County health officials said they began seeing a surge last November, sending it to local healthcare providers and clinics at that point information on disease and testing guidance.
Monterey County spokesman Karen Smith said many residents had experienced severe illness and delayed treatment and diagnosis. She said the prices are the best for those living in the southern part of the county and primarily in the Agricultural Salinas Valley.
She said the county is encouraging people to reduce their risk of getting sick by avoiding breathing dirt and dust.
Thompson, a doctor and researcher at UC Davis, said there is anecdotal evidence that the disease may be increasing in severity, and there is concern that it may have gained immunity to the common antifungal drugs used to combat it.
Although we theorize that the widespread use of antifungal chemicals in crops in areas where fungi are endemic, it may contribute to their resistance, research on this topic is ongoing, and so far the answer is elusive.
He said there is a statewide effort to investigate these issues. It said this includes participation from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the state’s Public Health Department, UC Davis, UC San Francisco, Cal State Fresno and Cal State Bakersfield.
He said the disease has been on the sidelines in the public health community for years as attention and funding targets other pathogens that have had a wider and more severe impact.
“I hate to lightly par it, but with limited resources, I think public health agencies really need to prioritize certain pathogens,” he said.
