25如果您居住或前往西南沙漠，您可能会有山谷发烧的风险，因为真菌称为球球菌that lives in the region’s desert soils. Spores from the fungus can become airborne and cause an infection when inhaled.
您可以在一年中的任何时候发展山谷热，但是当土壤干燥时，感染的风险最高。风，建筑工作甚至用铲子挖掘都可以将灰尘和真菌孢子释放到空中，在那里它们可以长时间停留。机载孢子可以行驶许多英里，这意味着居住在孢子中的任何人，包括图森和凤凰城在内，即使他们没有暴露于很多灰尘，也可能会被感染。
也以球虫病（其医疗名称），“沙漠风湿病”或“圣华金河谷热”（San Joaquin Valley Fever”而闻名，自1997年以来，这种真菌感染的病例一直在攀升，自2014年以来就增加了一倍。
山谷热的常见症状是什么？
山谷热的症状通常在感染后数周出现。被感染的人中，约有三分之二没有疾病迹象或出现轻度流感的症状，这些症状不需要医疗。大多数人甚至都不会意识到他们被感染了。但是，有些暴露的人会经历更严重的症状，需要医疗。
约翰·加尔吉亚尼（John Galgiani），医学博士, infectious disease specialist atBanner – University Medical Center Tucsonand head of theValley Fever Center for Excellence atthe University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson, said, “Only one out of three infections causes serious illness, which typically presents like pneumonia and makes people feel very sick, often for many weeks or several months.”
典型的山谷热症状包括：
- 咳嗽
- Chest pain
- 疲劳
- Fever
- 夜汗
- 头痛
- 皮疹
- Joint aches
Even if you are only visiting the Southwest, or you’re a seasonal resident, it is still important to know the signs of Valley fever. That’s because symptoms may not appear until you leave the area, and health care providers in other parts of the country are less likely to recognize the infection as Valley fever.
“They may attribute your symptoms to severe flu, pneumonia or other conditions,” Dr. Galgiani said. “Delays in diagnosis often lead to unnecessary medical care for the wrong diagnoses like bacterial infections, COVID-19 or even cancer. In some people, delays allow the infection to spread.”
In a small percentage of all Valley fever infections, the fungus spreads beyond the lungs to the skin, bones or brain. Although this can happen to anyone, most at risk are those with compromised immune systems, such as people with organ transplants, AIDS or immunosuppressing treatments for rheumatologic diseases. These infections do not go away on their own and often require many years and sometimes life-long antifungal treatments. And frequently, people need one or more surgical procedures to get their infections under control.
How is Valley fever diagnosed?
如果您认为自己可能患有山谷热，请与您的医生交谈。血液检查可以识别真菌。没有测试，就无法确定您是否患有山谷热，细菌性肺炎，Covid-19或其他具有类似症状的疾病。
胸部X射线通常显示出与山谷发烧的异常，但没有提供足够的细节来区分感染与其他疾病。
How is Valley fever treated?
大多数人不需要治疗山谷热 - 您的免疫反应会照顾感染，尽管症状通常需要很长时间才能完全解决。服用像氟康唑这样的口服抗真菌药物三到五个月可能会使某些人更快地康复，但是研究并未证明这一收益。
Galgiani博士说：“许多最持久的症状，例如疲劳和肌肉酸痛来自人体对感染的免疫反应，可能就像COVID-19之后的旷日持久的症状一样，这些症状没有受到抗真菌药物的帮助。”物理治疗和修复通常在治疗这些症状方面更有效。
Most of the time, prior infection makes people immune to Valley fever, but those with compromised immune systems may become reinfected.
How can you protect yourself against Valley fever?
“Anyone can get Valley fever, including children. It’s a good idea to stay indoors during dust storms with your doors and windows shut. But that doesn’t guarantee you won’t get infected,” Dr. Galgiani said.
Knowing that living in or visiting the desert Southwest exposes you to Valley fever can help. That’s because if you know about Valley fever, you’re more likely to seek a diagnosis and receive proper treatment sooner. “Remembering that Valley fever is common here is very important,” Dr. Galgiani said.
Fortunately, Valley fever is not contagious. This means that if you have Valley fever you are not a risk to others, and if you’re in close contact with someone with Valley fever, there’s no need to take precautions.
What about Valley fever in your pets?
山谷热还可以感染动物，尤其是狗。没有保证的方法可以防止狗被感染，尽管可以通过减少室外暴露并防止挖掘狗来最小化风险。
The bottom line
山谷热是由生活在沙漠土壤中的真菌引起的肺部感染。如果您认为自己可能患有山谷热，请与医生分享您的担忧。如果你需要与医疗保健专业人员联系to diagnose or rule out Valley fever, reach out to Banner Health.
Other useful articles
- What to Know About Valley Fever During the COVID-19 Pandemic
- Should I Be Worried About Pneumonia?
- Do I Really Need an Antibiotic?
