The Texas Department of State Health Services says a Texan has been diagnosed with malaria. This person has no travel history. The case is being investigated to see if anyone else has been exposed to the mosquito-borne disease. "Most of the cases that are seen here in the United States are as a result of travelers returning from endemic areas where malaria is prevalent. And this report of a case in Texas and an individual with no travel history is unusual," Dr.
People can protect themselves by using insect repellent with deet, dressing to cover your skin, and draining standing water. DSHS says occasionally a locally acquired case can happen when a certain type of mosquito bites an infected traveler and then bites someone else. There are no reports of malaria in the Austin area. Texas averages 120 travel-related malaria cases a year. The last locally acquired case was in 1994.