Article: Valley fever cases rise sharply: Health official fears 2006 could become Arizona's ?year of the spore'.

Byline: Sara Thorson

Apr. 4--State health officials have seen such an increase in valley fever cases in early 2006 that state epidemiologist David Engelthaler is calling this "the year of the spore." Arizona has already had more than 1,000 cases of the spore-caused infection in just January and February this year, when usually the state averages only about 2,700 cases per year. In February, the most recent month for which data is available, total cases -- 640 -- were more than triple the five-year February average. "We're kind of looking at this now as 'the year' for valley fever," Engelthaler said. "Over the past couple of months, it has really been the ...

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