A family is grieving the loss of “a loving husband, father, son, brother and cousin.” Connecticut dad Richard Pawulski, 47, died on October 14, “after long illness,” according to his obituary. Pawulski contracted the eastern equine encephalitis virus, commonly referred to as EEE, while doing yard work at his Connecticut home in 2019.
Eastern equine encephalitis is a rare but serious mosquito-borne disease. Per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 11 cases of the disease are reported each year in the United States. In 2019, however, the US saw an increase in the number of cases reported.
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Pawulski got sick in 2019 after getting bitten by a mosquito.
In 2019, 38 cases of EEE were reported in the US, according to the CDC. Pawulski was clearing brush in his backyard when an EEE-infected mosquito bit him that year, but he did not realize it at the time. He developed flu-like symptoms shortly afterward, however, which prompted him to seek out medical treatment, per Boston.com.
He was in a coma for two months.
When Pawulski went to the hospital, fluid was found in his brain. His condition declined quickly and he was in a coma for two months. Eventually, doctors determined that he had contracted the EEE virus from an infected mosquito, per Boston.com. When he later woke up from the coma, it was viewed as a miracle given that doctors thought he would never regain consciousness.
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His condition got worse again.
Though Pawulski awoke from the coma and showed signs of improvement at first, he faced numerous health challenges as a result of the mosquito-borne virus. According to the New York Post, the EEE virus led to a traumatic brain injury and liver and kidney complications. He continued to face health challenges over the past five years because of the virus.
He died from a staph infection that couldn't be treated.
Pawulski died after getting methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, a staph infection that is resistant to many antibiotics, per the Post. The infection was reportedly even more challenging to treat because of Pawulski’s complications from EEE.
His daughter, Amellia Pawulski, 18, told the newspaper that life changed “in the blink of an eye” for their family when her dad suddenly contracted the virus.
As Pawulski continued to struggle with his health over the past few years, he remained positive, his daughter recalled.
“I remember people being like, ‘Oh, how’s your day?’ And he was like, ‘My day is great. I woke up. I can breathe on my own. I can talk on my own. I can go to the bathroom on my own. I have no reason to be upset,’” she said.
EEE is very rare but very serious.
EEE is not common, but it can be life-threatening. There’s no vaccine to prevent it. Some people who get bitten by an EEE-infected mosquito do not have symptoms. For those who do develop symptoms, they might experience chills, fever and/or joint pain, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Symptoms like confusion, vomiting, diarrhea, or high fever could indicate a severe infection that causes brain inflammation (encephalitis). About 30% of people with severe eastern equine encephalitis die from the condition, per the CDC, and others face “ongoing neurologic problems.”
