Friday, August 24, 2012

West Nile-Protect yourself!

The incidence of West Nile Virus is increasing this year!   West Nile virus (WNV) activity reported to ArboNET, by state, United States, 2012 (as of August 21, 2012) from the CDC website
  Map of West Nile Virus activity describing United States that describes No WNV activity, Any WNV activity, WNV human disease case or presumptive viremic blood donor information.



The basics that you need to know are:
Spread to humans through mosquito bites and symptoms include:


  • Serious Symptoms in a Few People. About one in 150 people infected with WNV will develop severe illness. The severe symptoms can include high fever, headache, neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, vision loss, numbness and paralysis. These symptoms may last several weeks, and neurological effects may be permanent.


  • Milder Symptoms in Some People. Up to 20 percent of the people who become infected have symptoms such as fever, headache, and body aches, nausea, vomiting, and sometimes swollen lymph glands or a skin rash on the chest, stomach and back. Symptoms can last for as short as a few days, though even healthy people have become sick for several weeks.

  • No Symptoms in Most People. Approximately 80 percent of people (about 4 out of 5) who are infected with WNV will not show any symptoms at all.
 
Protect yourself from mosquito bites!