UC Merced students spread the word about Valley fever

Through carnival-style games and free food researchers at UC Merced took a new approach at introducing students to coccidioidomycosis, also known as Valley fever.

Undergraduate and graduate students set up booths inside the California Room on campus, with each one focused on a particular aspect of the disease, including clinical interventions, psycho-social issues, barriers to health care and economic impacts brought on by the fungal infection.

The event also included a flash mob, in which volunteers broke into a dance routine in an attempt to get other students to take part in Valley Fever Awareness Day.

Jamie Melara, a research assistant and human biology student, presented information regarding endemic areas and the disease’s geographic expansion.

Melara said that while the disease is mainly associated with California and Arizona, cases have also been reported in 18 other states. One of the biggest groups at risk of contracting Valley fever is agricultural workers, who typically work in areas with dry dirt and desert-like weather conditions that allow the fungus to grow, Melara explained.

“The worst part is that sometimes soil will stick to their clothes, and that’s something they can take home to their children,” she said.

A presentation by Jose Zambrano, also a human biology student and research assistant, looked at the financial burdens patients must deal with. He said that a Valley fever patient can see up to $77,000 in hospital costs. And this cost can spike if the patient develops pneumonia and requires a longer hospital stay or isolation.

Direct costs may include diagnosis, initial treatment and follow-up treatment. Sometimes the long-term indirect costs are overlooked, Zambrano said. These include work loss, disability and mortality. According to Zambrano’s research, costs for patients increase about 15 percent each year.

The event, which was open to the public, attracted a few Valley fever survivors, including Corlé May. May, 56, was diagnosed with the fungal disease about 25 years ago. May believes she contracted Valley fever on a Buttonwillow farm in Kern County.

Since then, she has continuously dealt with fatigue, joint pain and occasional fevers, she said. May explained it took several years for her to be correctly diagnosed, and to this day there are many things about the disease she is still trying to understand.

“I had some unanswered questions and I’ve always been interested in learning more,” May said when asked why she attended Valley Fever Awareness Day. May said she found the event to be of great benefit to the community and hopes the university can replicate it in future years.

Erin Gaab, a post-doctoral researcher at UC Merced and event organizer, said the purpose of it was to introduce students and other community members who may have never heard of Valley fever to the causes and effects of the fungal disease.

“We’re pleased with the student enthusiasm and that they’re asking good questions,” Gaab said during the event. “The turnout has been great, beyond what I expected.”

This story was originally published September 16, 2014 at 6:30 PM.