Anthony Fauci, the longtime director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was hospitalized with West Nile virus and is now recovering at home.
Fauci, who served on the White House Coronavirus Task Force, is expected to make a full recovery, a spokesperson told CNN.
West Nile virus is the most common mosquito-borne disease in the continental United States, with an average of more than 2,200 cases reported each year, according to Department of Health and Human Services.
Of those cases, about 1,000 people are hospitalized each year with the most severe form of the disease, which if it spreads to the brain and nervous system, can cause brain inflammation, brain damage and death.
There is no specific treatment for the virus and no vaccine, but most cases are mild and those affected may experience flu-like symptoms or skin rashes.
The most likely time to contract the virus is in August and September, during the peak of mosquito season.
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