East Lyme Resident With EEE Is Second Ever In State History

EAST LYME, CT—An adult in East Lyme has contracted Eastern Equine Encephalitis, public health officials said.

This is the second-ever reported case of a human with EEE in state history.

Department of Public Health commissioner Renée D. Coleman-Mitchell said an adult resident of East Lyme tested positive for EEE. The person became ill the last week of August with encephalitis and remains hospitalized.

Laboratory tests, which were completed today at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Laboratory in Ft. Collins, Colorado, confirmed the presence of antibodies to the virus that causes EEE.

“EEE is a rare but serious and potentially fatal disease that can affect people of all ages,” Coleman Mitchell said. “Using insect repellent, covering bare skin and avoiding being outdoors from dusk to dawn are effective ways to help keep you from being bitten by mosquitoes.”

The EEE virus has been identified in mosquitoes in 12 towns and in horses in two other towns. Towns where mosquitoes have tested positive for EEE include Chester, Haddam, Hampton, Groton, Killingworth, Ledyard, Madison, North Stonington, Plainfield, Shelton, Stonington, and Voluntown. Horses have tested positive for EEE virus in Colchester and Columbia this season, and the virus has been detected in a flock of wild pheasants.

Other states throughout the Northeast are also experiencing an active season for EEE. In addition to the virus being found in mosquitoes, there have been a total of eight human cases of EEE infection in Massachusetts and one human case in Rhode Island, with one case in each state resulting in a fatality.

“This is the second human case of EEE ever reported in Connecticut,” Dr. Matthew Cartter, Director of Infectious Diseases for the DPH said.

“The first human case of EEE reported in Connecticut occurred in the fall of 2013.” In that case, the person died.