Dallas County, TX reports 5 new W. Nile infections

[TexasStooge]

Total of eight cases this year is fewer than were reported last year

By SHERRY JACOBSON / The Dallas Morning News

Dallas County health officials on Monday reported five new West Nile infections, boosting the number of possible human cases of the virus this year to eight.

"None of these are clustered in any location in the county," said Dr. David Buhner, medical director of the county Department of Health and Human Services. "We continue to hope the season will be mild. We're still under last year's numbers."

A year ago at this time, 31 severe West Nile infections had been confirmed in Dallas County residents. In all, 54 people were stricken last year with serious neurological symptoms of West Nile, including meningitis or encephalitis. Four of them died.

This year, the county is counting those people who appear to be suffering from less serious infections called West Nile fever, Dr. Buhner said. "The labs are reporting these milder infections to us, so it's much easier for us to go ahead and investigate them all."

West Nile fever is characterized by symptoms that include fever, body aches, headache and, occasionally, swollen lymph glands and rash. The symptoms typically last a few days, although some cases can linger several weeks, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

West Nile fever does not appear to cause long-term health effects, officials said. While there is no specific treatment for a West Nile infection, people tend to recover using over-the-counter medications for head and body aches.

Most doctor's offices and hospital emergency rooms offer a blood test to determine whether someone's symptoms are related to a West Nile infection. State health departments require a second blood test to confirm any West Nile infection, a process that takes a month or longer.

As of Aug. 10, the CDC had reported 147 cases of West Nile fever in the United States this year, along with 192 of the more severe infections, which usually require hospitalization.

West Nile is a virus carried in 130 species of birds. It can be spread to people by mosquito bites. City and county officials said Monday that insecticide spraying this week would target those areas where the virus had been detected recently in mosquitoes and people.

The new human cases include a 23-year-old Balch Springs man who lives in ZIP code 75180; a 52-year-old Dallas man in 75215; a 32-year-old Dallas man in 75203; a 41-year-old Garland man in 75044; and a 35-year-old DeSoto man in 75115.

County residents were urged to protect themselves by ridding their property of standing water where mosquitoes can breed.

[CaptinCrunch]

with all the rain we have had it don't suprise me, the mosquito's around our house look like small birds, their freaking huge