Kamal Ghorui
A tragic loss in California has drawn attention to a disease most people have barely heard of: Valley fever. Chiranjeevi Kolla, a 37-year-old tech worker from India living in the Bay Area, died after battling the illness for a month, a case that’s now making waves in the Indian community and beyond.
Chiranjeevi Kolla’s death: What happened?
According to family and fundraising pages set up after his death, Kolla’s illness started out innocently enough, with a cough, fever, just like any garden-variety cold or flu. But things took a sharp turn. His symptoms got worse quickly, and what doctors thought was pneumonia turned out, after further tests, to be Valley fever: a serious infection caused by inhaling spores of a soil-dwelling fungus found across parts of the southwestern US.Kolla is survived by his wife, Pavani, and their five-year-old son, Vihan. Family members shared the toll this took on them, as his young son kept asking when Dad would come home. He was the main provider, making the sudden loss even harder.
Valley fever: What exactly is it?
Valley fever, though common in certain parts of California and Arizona, barely registers outside those areas. It affects thousands each year, but most cases pass with mild or no symptoms. Some, though, can turn severe, just as Kolla’s did.Here’s what we know about Valley fever and how to protect yourself if you live in or travel through risk areas.Per Mayo Clinic, Valley fever is caused by a fungus called Coccidioides, which grows in dry soil and desert climates. You’ll find it mostly in California, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and some regions of Mexico and Central/South America.The disease spreads when someone inhales dust in which the fungus is lurking, often when the dirt gets stirred up by wind, construction, farming, or digging. Valley fever doesn’t pass from person to person. You only get it from breathing in contaminated dust.
What are the symptoms?
One big challenge with Valley fever? It masquerades as a run-of-the-mill cold, case of bronchitis, or a mild flu. Symptoms like cough, chest pain, fever, fatigue, headache, and body aches are common. In some people, there’s a rash or night sweats, too.Lots of people never know they caught it, because the symptoms are mild and go away. But for others, the illness can blow up into full-blown pneumonia or even cause respiratory failure. Rarely, the infection escapes the lungs and spreads through the body, leading to a dangerous condition called disseminated coccidioidomycosis, which can be life-threatening.Some people are especially vulnerable: older adults, pregnant women, anyone with a weakened immune system, diabetics, or people with chronic lung diseases face a higher risk of severe illness. Even so, sometimes healthy people like Kolla fall seriously ill, too.Cases of Valley fever have risen sharply in places like California and Arizona in recent years, with experts pointing to climate change and more droughts as a possible reason — warmer, dustier conditions spread the spores around more.
How to avoid Valley fever?
Most prevention comes down to limiting dusty air exposure in high-risk regions. If you’re in a dust storm, stay inside with windows shut tight. People who work in farming, construction, or digging should wear good masks, like N95 respirators, to avoid breathing in dust.You can also use air filters indoors, and if you have to dig, wetting the soil first can help keep dust down. People with weak immune systems should take extra care in the desert Southwest.If you live in or visit these regions and end up with a nagging cough or mystery fever that doesn’t clear up, don’t brush it off as just a stubborn cold. Especially if you’ve been around dusty areas, it’s worth talking to your doctor and asking about Valley fever.
