Cyclosporiasis Cases in California Are Way Up — but Officials Say It’s Not the National Outbreak. What’s Happening?

For context, based on their 2015-2025 figures, CDPH’s annual average for cyclosporiasis cases is 106. Why officials believe cyclosporiasis cases among Californians are upCyclosporiasis — pronounced “sigh-clo-spore-EYE-uh-sis,” similarly to “psoriasis” — is a gastrointestinal disease caused by the minuscule cyclospora parasite, which lives in the poop of infected people. It’s not a new disease, and CDPH said that “every year, cases of cyclosporiasis are reported in California.” But the agency also suspects that this year there have been “increased cases in travelers to areas with cyclosporiasis outbreaks, whether international or domestic.” On the public health side, CDPH said the recent increase in California cases could be due to “overall improvements to our surveillance and data collection methods over time,” too.