FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — Valley Fever affects thousands of Californians each year.

“Valley Fever is a very complex and complicated disease,” said Dr. Geetha Sivasubramania, the Division Chief of Infectious Diseases at UCSF Fresno. “It’s not as simple as pneumonia, and people who work out in the fields get it. It’s not that simple. It is an endemic infection in this part of the country.”

In 2024, state health leaders reported more than 12,700 cases of Valley Fever. Dr. Sivasubramanian says she’s seen a number of patients diagnosed with the illness in the last few months.

Data from the California Department of Public Health breaks down the number of cases in Central California.

In Fresno County, there have been 763 cases. Tulare County has seen 518. Merced County confirmed 148 cases so far, while Madera County saw 70 cases as of last month.

“In 60% of folks, it does not cause any problems. It’s a very mild infection. It mimics flu and pneumonia, and it goes away,” said Dr. Sivasubramania. “But in the other 40%, it can go on to cause a more symptomatic infection. In about 10%-15%, it can go outside of the lungs and go to other parts of the body.”

That’s why doctors at UCSF Fresno are researching ways to improve Valley Fever diagnosis. Dr. Sivasubramanian wants to address the barriers and challenges, like where patients can get tested.

“We want to go out and raise awareness among physicians, urgent care doctors,” said Dr. Sivasubramania. “In this part of the country, if you have someone coming in with pneumonia or bronchitis or a cough that’s not going away, you have to test for Valley Fever.”

While prevention and education are also part of the effort, Dr. Sivasubramanian says testing is key.

“We do have a couple of studies ongoing right now, some newer technologies,” said Dr. Sivasubramania. “PCR-based methods that we are trying to get funding and get this testing started at UCSF Fresno.”

Dr. Sivasubramania explains her vision and goal.

“We want to unify all of these patients in one place,” said Dr. Sivasubramania. “If you have a test for Valley Fever done and you don’t know where to send them, send them to us.”

By breaking the barriers, doctors believe this can help save many lives in the future.

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