A deadly bacteria which kills around half of those infected is now considered 'endemic' to multiple states along the Gulf Coast of the US.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported three cases of infection in humans from the bacteria Burkholderia pseudomallei which causes melioidosis and can be fatal if left untreated.
A CDC expert has said the bacteria is lurking in soil and stagnant water across the 1,600 miles of Gulf Coast from Texas, through, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama to Florida.
Julia Petras, an epidemic intelligence service officer with CDC's National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, said: "It is an environmental organism that lives naturally in the soil, and typically freshwater in certain areas around the world. Mostly in subtropical and tropical climates."
A case was reported in Mississippi in January following another two documented since 2020 in the same area, but the true number of cases could be much higher.
Most people exposed to the bacteria won't show symptoms and their bodies will develop antibodies against it.
All three patients who were infected were successfully treated, Dr Petras said.
The bacteria can infect people through open wounds or even by drinking contaminated drinking water.
The most vulnerable people to melioidosis are those with pre-existing conditions such as diabetes, chronic liver/ kidney disease or an autoimmune disease.
She added: "Excessive alcohol use is also a known risk factor, and binge drinking has actually been associated with cases as well from endemic areas."
Once infected, the bacterium attacks the organs leaving patients more exposed to diseases such as pneumonia and sepsis.
Dr Petras said: "It's estimated that there's probably 160,000 cases a year around the world and 80,000 deaths.
"This is one of those diseases that is also called the great mimicker because it can look like a lot of different things.
"It's greatly under-reported and under-diagnosed and under-recognized — we often like to say that it's been the neglected tropical disease."
The bacteria is native to tropical areas in South East Asia and northern Australia.
Thankfully the bacteria can be treated, says Dr Petras, but patients face several months of antibiotic treatment.
She said: "We have antibiotics that work.
"What I'm talking about is IV antibiotics for at least two weeks, followed by three to six months of oral antibiotics."
She added: "It's extensive treatment, but if you've finished the full course and you're diagnosed early, which is the really key thing, your outcome is probably going to be quite good."
