Steve Quayle News Alerts

October 23 , 2002
By DENNIS THOMPSON JR.

Delaware health officials have confirmed the state's first human case of West Nile virus, but officials said the case does not signify a greater threat for people.

Blood tests came back this week showing that a 39-year-old Dover man contracted the disease in early September, said Allison Taylor Levine, spokeswoman for the state Division of Public Health.

Levine said the man went to his doctor in late September after experiencing fever and aches and was diagnosed with a viral infection. He suffered headaches, fever and body aches, but was not hospitalized, she said.

"The physician decided to test him just to rule out West Nile," she said. "Eventually, the tests came back positive. As of early October, he was feeling better, but still had some residual tiredness."

Levine said he has made a full recovery from the mosquito-borne virus. Health officials would not release his name.

Officials said they think the man suffered a case of "West Nile fever," a new classification the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention created to account for people who suffer milder symptoms because their immune systems are better at fighting off the potentially fatal virus.

State epidemiologist Leroy Hathcock said there probably are other people in Delaware who have contracted West Nile virus this year but mistook it for influenza or some other mild disease. About 216 Delaware residents have tested negative for the virus this year, Levine said.

"We know there's activity going on. It's just a matter of finding additional cases," Hathcock said. "I'm sure we could find people who have been infected before."

About 204 wild birds, 17 horses and six mosquito collections have tested positive for the virus this year in Delaware, state health officials said. Last year, positive results were reported for 34 birds, four horses and one mosquito collection.

West Nile virus can cause encephalitis, a potentially lethal inflammation of the brain. It produces flu-like symptoms and can be dangerous to young children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems. The virus is spread after mosquitoes feed on infected birds and then bite people, other birds and animals. Crows are most often infected by West Nile, although blue jays and birds of prey such as hawks and owls also are susceptible.

About 1 percent of those stricken by the virus develop severe symptoms, including high fever, tremors, coma and paralysis. About 3 percent to 15 percent of those with a severe infection may die from the disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The virus first surfaced in the United States in 1999 and now has spread to most states east of the Rocky Mountains. This year, there have been 3,231 reported human cases and 176 deaths nationally, agency spokesman Llelwyn Grant said.

By comparison, about 20,000 people die and an additional 114,000 are hospitalized from influenza each year, said Curtis Allen, a spokesman for the agency's National Immunization Program.

Hathcock said most healthy people should not worry about West Nile virus.

"It's not something where if a person gets a mosquito bite they should assume they're going to die," Hathcock said. "If you've got an intact immune system and you're reasonably healthy, you should be able to fight off the virus."

However, people should take precautions when outdoors to protect against mosquito bites, Levine said. This includes avoiding mosquito-infested areas, wearing pants and long-sleeved shirts, and applying insect repellent.

"We are coming to the end of the mosquito season here, but it won't be fully over until we have our first freeze," Levine said. "People should keep this in mind for next year. Next spring is not that far away."

West Nile virus has been occurring more frequently over the past few weeks in wild birds, mosquito collections and horses in Delaware, Levine said. That follows the pattern of the last two years, when more cases surfaced in animals during the fall than were diagnosed during the spring and summer months.

Delaware found its first equine case for the year in mid-September, health officials said. Since then, a total of 17 horses have tested positive for the virus. Two horses died from West Nile virus in Delaware in 2000. Four horses in southern Delaware developed the illness last year, but survived.

State officials earlier in the year asked Delaware horse owners to inoculate horses with a new West Nile vaccine that became available last fall. There is no vaccine for humans.

http://www.delawareonline.com/newsjournal/local/2002/10/23westnileinresid.html