Dr. Anthony Fauci told CBS News that he is recovering at home after being hospitalized for the West Nile virus.
Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and longtime public health official who led the United States response to the coronavirus pandemic, was hospitalized about 10 days ago, he said Saturday, at which point he was suffering from fever, chills and severe fatigue.
Fauci said he left the hospital three days ago and is expected to make a full recovery at home.
West Nile virus is transmitted primarily by mosquitoes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is the most common cause of mosquito-borne disease in the Americas and spreads during mosquito season in the summer and fall. Fauci likely caught the virus from a mosquito bite in his yard, he said.
There are no vaccines against West Nile virus, nor are there any medications to treat symptoms. However, most people who are infected do not feel sick, according to the CDC. About one in five infected people develop fever and other symptoms. About one in 150 infected people develop “severe, sometimes fatal illness,” according to the CDC.
According to the CDC, about 216 cases of West Nile virus have been reported in 33 states this year.
Other mosquito-borne viruses include dengue fever. US health authorities recently warned doctors to warn about dengue fever because Cases this year break international records. Puerto Rico, like much of Latin America, is experiencing a dengue epidemic, while limited local spread of the virus has also been reported in Florida, Hawaii, Texas, Arizona and California.
