Family of 12 Sickened With Fungus From Bat Droppings After Visiting Popular Tourist Spot

A family of 12, including children arsenic young arsenic 8, were sickened by coming successful adjacent interaction pinch bats aft they visited a celebrated tourer destination successful Costa Rica.

A full of 13 extended family members from Georgia, Texas and Washington traveled to Costa Rica from Dec. 21 to Dec. 28, 2024, according to a lawsuit study from nan U.S. Centers for Disease Control. Twelve of nan family members opted to sojourn Venado Caves connected Dec. 24. The celebrated tourer destination adjacent Arenal Volcano is known for its waterfalls, underground river, striking limestone formations — and colony of bats.

The caves person been associated pinch a previous outbreak of histoplasmosis, a fungal infection that chiefly impacts nan lungs, and is linked to vertebrate aliases bat droppings. 

“All reported seeing bats and having nonstop interaction pinch bat droppings while crawling and squeezing done tight spaces successful nan cave,” nan CDC study says. Beginning 8 days aft exposure, each 12 who toured nan caves began to consciousness “mildly aliases moderately ill," while nan 1 family personnel who did not sojourn nan cave had nary symptoms. The CDC notes that nan illness does not dispersed from personification to person.

Those affected sought aesculapian care, and 1 family personnel was hospitalized aft his “abnormal” lung scans “raised concerns astir lung cancer.” Once doctors reviewed nan family’s recreation history, curen was quickly shifted to reside concerns of histoplasmosis, which nan CDC explains tin origin cause flu-like symptoms including fever and chills, malaise, cough, headache, thorax symptom and assemblage aches.

The condition, nan CDC notes, is “often misdiagnosed."

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In total, 1 eight-year aged and 5 children betwixt nan ages of 11 and 17 were sickened aft visiting nan cave. One big was confirmed to person histoplasmosis via laboratory tests, and nan remaining patients were treated for “suspected” aliases “probable” histoplasmosis fixed their relationship to nan diligent who tested positive.

The CDC contacted nan U.S. Embassy successful Costa Rica and nan Costa Rica Ministry of Health to connection much accusation connected histoplasmosis successful waiver forms for cave exploration, and successful March, nan U.S. Embassy successful Costa Rica  issued a warning astir nan “recent spike” successful cases, noting, “Histoplasmosis tin lead to superior and perchance life-threatening complications if near untreated.”