As of Monday, 240 Valley fever cases have been confirmed in San Luis Obispo County this year. County public health officials say that number is expected to keep going up.
We're expected to see more cases this winter because of the winter we had in 2022-2023 after years of drought.
Chest x-rays or blood tests can be done by a doctor to test for the fungus known as Coccidioidomycosis (also called Valley fever or “cocci”). Those who live or work near areas where soil and dirt are stirred up are more susceptible to attaining the fungus.
However, those over 60 years old have been found to have more severe cases of Valley fever. Mild cases resolve on their own within a few months.
In severe cases, doctors treat the fungus with anti-fungal medications. The course of treatment is normally longer than six months.
According to San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department epidemiologist Jessie Burmester, the average number of Valley fever cases in the county has been 220 for the past 10 years. Now, we're sitting at 240 cases in September. This is not only a countywide issue but a statewide issue.
“There has been some recent research in California that shows that after periods of drought and then really wet winters, we get kind of this massive bloom of the fungus that causes Valley fever," Burmester said.
Both people and animals can get sick if they breathe in dust that contains the Valley fever fungus. However, Burmester says most people, around six in 10, have no symptoms and their bodies will fight off the infection naturally.
“If we think about construction workers, especially in new areas of construction that haven't been previously touched, whether that's solar farm work, whether that's new buildings being invested into in areas that don't have preexisting buildings, that can be a source of exposure as well," Burmester said of those most likely to attain the fungus.
According to the epidemiologist, community members should be aware of areas with high dust and symptoms, which include headaches, fatigue and coughing.
Other symptoms include shortness of breath, night sweats, muscle aches or joint pain, and sometimes a rash on the body.
