Texas is one of the nation’s hotspots for a diarrhea-causing parasite, and new data details which parts of the state have had the most infections.
This week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 145 cyclosporiasis cases across 17 states between May and June 16. As Chron previously reported, Texas was among the three states with the highest reported case counts, with between 11 and 30.
The CDC’s report didn’t specify where the cases were found in each state. But a spokesperson for the Texas Department of State Health Services confirmed that most of the cases are coming from the southeast area.
The department does not release data with counties that have fewer than 10 cases in a county, but confirmed that Texas has 15 counties with at least 1 confirmed case of cyclospora this year. Only one county in the state has greater than 10 confirmed cases this year: Nueces County with 14. That’s the county where Corpus Christi is located.
State health officials said most Texas cases have been reported in Public Health Regions 11 and 6/5S. Region 11 covers much of South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley, stretching from Webb County to Refugio County. Public Health Region 6/5S encompasses the Houston area and surrounding Southeast Texas counties, extending from Matagorda County to Hardin County.
While Texas is seeing an uptick in cases, press officer Douglas Loveday told Chron, “It’s not unusual to have cases at this time of year.”
As the CDC has reported, case counts rise during the spring and summer months, so the “cyclosporiasis season” is considered to run from May through August. The agency, along with state and federal health and regulatory officials, monitor cases year-round to detect outbreaks.
As stated in the Texas Health Department’s May 1 advisory, which is sent out annually, people of all ages are at risk of infection from the intestinal illness-which can be caught when people eat food or drink water that’s been contaminated with feces, though it does not appear to spread through direct person-to-person contact.
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This article originally published at Corpus Christi home to the most diarrhea parasite cases in Texas.