July Communicable

Disease Updates

Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe.

Rare virus spread by deer ticks causes 1 death in Wisconsin

Powassan virus is a rare illness in Wisconsin spread by deer ticks (also called blacklegged ticks).

As of June, three adult Wisconsin residents have contracted Powassan virus so far this year. All three were hospitalized, and one person died from the infection.

Powassan virus is very rare, but cases have increased in recent years. It can cause mild illness or more serious neurologic disease.

We don’t know exactly how long a tick carrying the virus has to be attached to a person to transmit the virus, but it’s probably less than 12 hours and could be as little as 15 minutes.

You can prevent Powassan virus, Lyme disease, and other tickborne diseases by avoiding getting bitten by ticks. Use bug spray on your skin and clothing and wear long-sleeved pants and tall socks, especially in wooded and brushy areas with tall grass. Check your whole body for ticks after being outdoors.

Read more about Powassan virus at Wisconsin DHS’ website. 

Wisconsin has expanded its wastewater monitoring program to also track measles, the state Department of Health Services has announced.

DHS already works with municipalities to monitor wastewater for influenza, COVID-19, mpox, and RSV around Wisconsin.

Starting in June, the DHS program began also monitoring for measles at wastewater treatment facilities in Wisconsin. Forty-four sites, including Eau Claire, participate in the state’s wastewater monitoring network. The network covers about 50% of Wisconsin’s population.

Wastewater samples will be tested for measles twice per month.

If the measles virus is detected in a wastewater sample, it means one or more people infected with measles were present in that community.

How wastewater monitoring works: It looks for the genetic material, or RNA, from the measles virus in untreated wastewater from communities. This approach is relatively new, but some state and local programs have used it successfully during the current U.S. measles outbreak.

Read more in DHS’ announcement.  

July measles update

Measles cases have now been reported in 39 states (a total of 1,309 cases as of July 15). No cases have been reported in Wisconsin so far. 

Of the cases we know about, 92% have been unvaccinated or their vaccination status is unknown.

Thirteen percent of cases have needed to be hospitalized, and three measles deaths have been confirmed.

The best way to protect yourself and your family is to make sure you’re up to date on your MMR (measles-mumps-rubella) vaccine.

Do you or your child need to get the MMR vaccine? If you have health insurance, contact your doctor to talk about getting the vaccine or to make an appointment. If you don’t have health insurance or if your child is on BadgerCare, call the Health Department at 715-839-4718 to make an appointment. Read more about measles here.

Was this email forwarded to you? Click here to subscribe.

Have questions? Email us!

Follow us or get in touch: