The Changing Epidemiology of Coccidioidomycosis in Los Angeles (LA) County, California, 1973–2011

Coccidioidomycosis, also known as Valley Fever, is often thought of as an endemic disease of central California exclusive of Los Angeles County. The fungus that causes Valley Fever, Coccidioides spp., grows in previously undisturbed soil of semi-arid and arid environments of certain areas of the Americas. LA County has a few large areas with such environments, particularly the Antelope Valley which has been having substantial land development. Coccidioidomycosis that is both clinically- and laboratory-confirmed is a mandated reportable disease in LA County. Population surveillance data for 1973–2011 reveals an annual rate increase from 0.87 to 3.2 cases per 100,000 population (n = 61 to 306 annual cases). In 2004, case frequency started substantially increasing with notable epidemiologic changes such as a rising 2.1 to 5.7 male-to-female case ratio stabilizing to 1.4–2.2. Additionally, new building construction in Antelope Valley greatly rose in 2003 and displayed a strong correlation (R = 0.92, Pearson p<0.0001) with overall LA County incidence rates for 1996–2007. Of the 24 LA County health districts, 19 had a 100%-1500% increase in cases when comparing 2000–2003 to 2008–2011. Case residents of endemic areas had stronger odds of local exposures, but cases from areas not known to be endemic had greater mortality (14% versus 9%) with notably more deaths during 2008–2011. Compared to the 57 other California counties during 2001–2011, LA County had the third highest average annual number of cases and Antelope Valley had a higher incidence rate than all but six counties. With the large number of reported coccidioidomycosis cases, multi-agency and community partnering is recommended to develop effective education and prevention strategies to protect residents and travelers.