If you visited Acapulco, Mexico, over spring break, the Centers for Disease Control wants you to fill out a questionnaire. Centers for Disease Control officials contacted all university student health centers, said Dr. E.J. Reppert, medical director of Lafene Health Center at Kansas State University. This disease is usually a mild illness that acts like a cold and occurs one to three weeks after exposure.
Recovery is rapid and complete in nearly all persons.
He said one person in 50,000 develops a very severe form of the disease. Severe disease develops more often in persons with HIV or in persons who are immune suppressed. Treatment is necessary for those with severe disease but not recommended for persons with mild disease. Some persons will have an illness, which can be moderately severe, in which fever and significant symptoms continue beyond four days. More evaluations may be needed in these persons, Reppert said.