The number of reported Valley Fever cases hit a record high last year, with 5,535 cases in Arizona – up 57 percent from 2005, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Health officials will address the epidemic and its impact on Arizona’s people and pets at a conference Tuesday, Nov. 13, by The University of Arizona’s Valley Fever Center for Excellence and the Arizona Department of Health Services.

The public and media are invited to attend.

WHEN: TUESDAY, NOV. 13, NOON  

WHERE: Virginia G. Piper Auditorium, UA College of Medicine – Phoenix in partnership with ASU, 550 E. Van Buren, Building 2, Phoenix

SPEAKERS: Rebecca Sunenshine, MD, and Peter Kelly, MD, Arizona Department of Health Services; Susan Hoover, MD, UA College of Medicine,  Lisa Shubitz, DVM, University of Arizona; John Galgiani, MD, Valley Fever Center for Excellence, UA College of Medicine

Valley Fever is an infection caused by inhaling fungal spores found in desert soil.  Most individuals contract a lung infection that usually requires no treatment.  However, symptoms can range from very mild to serious enough to interfere with daily activities for weeks to months. A small percentage of cases are serious and often involve body areas other that the lungs.  With currently available treatments, some patients require many years of treatment or even lifelong therapy to suppress the infection.