Officials warn of West Nile virus threat in San Fernando Valley

Health officials collect samples of mosquitoes from traps placed at various locations throughout the county. Sun told LAist that, in the week prior, only 23 samples had tested positive, and 24 samples came back as positive in the week before that. The disease has now spread globally, with the first case in the Western hemisphere identified in New York City in 1999. There are no confirmed human cases of EEE in Rhode Island.

Mosquitoes known to carry West Nile virus are most active from dusk to midnight, Mangan said, so if people are out at this time of day, it is an especially good idea to wear bug spray.

A single case of California serogroup encephalitis has occurred in Ripley County.

Aedes aegypti mosquitoes infected with the bacterium which reduces mosquito transmitted diseases such as dengue and chikungunya. The most common virus in this group, La Crosse encephalitis, typically causes illness in children under 16 years of age. Milder fever and body aches can progress to weakness, confusion and paralysis, which can take months to years of recovery or even result in a patient’s death.

The best way to prevent West Nile virus disease, and a variety of other mosquito-borne diseases, is to avoid mosquito bites.

Mosquito control has asked the Department of Natural Resources if they can fog more in the area where the horse was found.

“And then what they do is, they grind up all the mosquitoes and see if the West Nile Virus is present”, Tekac said.

Defend yourself – use repellents containing DEET, Picaridin, or Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus.

Make sure screens fit tightly over doors and windows to keep mosquitoes out of homes. While most people infected with the virus show no symptoms, some may have high fever, severe headache, tiredness and/or a stiff neck that can last several days to several weeks.

“Once they establish themselves here it would be more hard to control and maybe we’ll see some diseases we haven’t seen before”, he said, adding the species can also transmit dengue fever and chikungunya – both of which can cause fevers, and headaches along with muscle and joint pain. If people have symptoms and suspect West Nile virus infection, they should contact their healthcare provider.