Deadly bite from a common pest

August 28, 3:35 PMHealth Care ExaminerChristine Whitmarsh

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As we approach the last official outdoor party and BBQ holiday of the summer, Labor Day weekend, I can’t help but think of another population of living things that is looking forward to a tasty feast – mosquitoes.

Newsday recently reported the deaths of two elderly people in New York from the mosquito-borne and much dreaded West Nile Virus. Because this often deadly virus is transmitted by a very prevalent, small, usually ignored pest – the mosquito – the level of fear it strikes in the public often outweighs the actual realities of it.

The wife of one of the victims was quoted as saying, "He never complained that he had a bite from a mosquito” about her husband’s sudden demise following flu-like symptoms and then total paralysis.

Who generally complains about a mosquito bite? This is naturally treated as a minor, itchy irritation but certainly not a threat to one’s health or life. Hearing things like this is enough to make anyone cover themselves with African mosquito netting and empty a bottle of bug spray onto their skin surface before venturing outdoors, especially in mosquito friendly areas (moist and/or heavily wooded areas in particular).

West Nile Virus: Facts to Combat Fear

1. The West Nile can be fatal for people with compromised immune systems, such as the elderly and the very young.
2. In 2007, the number of cases reported decreased to 3,623 (from 4,26( and the number of deaths dropped to 124 (from 177).
3. Decrease your odds of acquiring the virus (there is no absolute prevention or vaccine for humans) spend less time outdoors, wear long covering clothing, apply bug repellant that contains DEET and ensure that mosquitoes cannot enter buildings by using screens on windows and doors.
4. A drug called AMD 3100, which had been proposed as an antiretroviral drug for HIV, has shown promise against West Nile encephalitis; Research for several other methods of treating the virus is also ongoing.
5. Most commonly, the first symptoms of WNV is an infection with no obvious symptoms, followed by a stage of infection marked by a steadily worsening fever, headache and chills which, if left untreated leads to a type of neurological condition similar to meningitis and encephalitis.

There are obviously other courses of progress for the WNV disease. The best advice I can give you for WNV and any other sudden, steadily worsening symptoms that you or a loved one present with – is when in doubt, see a doctor. Your health and your life is definitely worth the risk of appearing “silly” if the symptoms turn out to be perfectly innocent and non-life threatening. That is the prognosis I wish for each and every one of you.

Additional Resources: 

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/nassau/ny-linile0829,0,6201810.story
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_nile_virus