Dengue cases are on the rise again across Florida. The CDC’s latest data shows big jumps in several counties: Hillsborough went from 20 to 36 cases, while Miami-Dade climbed to 67 from 49. Broward saw a small uptick, moving from 11 to 12, and Lee County reported five cases, enough to move it out of the CDC’s usual low-end reporting category. Meanwhile, Palm Beach held steady at seven. The CDC still lists Pinellas in the “1 to 4” category, which doesn’t provide exact numbers.
Most people who get dengue in Florida picked it up while traveling. The state tracked 86 travel-related cases this year and another 23 that people got inside Florida, according to the Department of Health. Hillsborough leads the state in locally caught cases, with 15 so far, and local mosquito control teams have already responded with truck and aerial spraying.
Dengue hits fast. Symptoms like fever, muscle aches, joint pain, and sometimes a rash can show up within two weeks of a mosquito bite. The state describes dengue as painful and draining, but it rarely kills.
Mosquitoes spread dengue, like the ones that carry West Nile or yellow fever. Thanks to travel, especially to places like the Caribbean, Central and South America, Asia, and nearby Puerto Rico, new cases show up every year. Health officials point out that an infected traveler can come home, get bitten by a local mosquito, and spread the disease to others.
Mosquito management teams, like the one in Sarasota County, keep an eye out for these threats. They use special traps, test mosquitoes for viruses in their labs, and stay on high alert during the rainy summer mosquito season from May to October. If they find infected mosquitoes, they step up trapping, hunt down breeding spots, and keep the public informed. Whenever there’s a human case, local and state health teams work together, asking about recent travel and deciding whether there’s been local spread.
Sarasota County uses different warnings for mosquito illnesses. An “advisory” means people need to protect themselves from bites when there are signs of possible disease activity, like positive wild animal tests or the first few human cases. An “alert” is more serious and means there’s a definite bump in infected mosquitoes or local transmission.
So far in 2026, the CDC reports 1,575 dengue cases nationwide, but those numbers can shift as new data rolls in. There’s often a lag in the official numbers as local health departments catch up on their reports, so the real tally might be higher or change.
Click here for more information from the CDC.
