On September 5, 2017, the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health sent Health Advisory #140, “Increase in West Nile Virus Activity in Mosquitoes,” to health care providers, hospitals and other health care facilities.
The state’s mosquito surveillance program tested mosquitoes from May 24 to July 26, 2017. It found several pools of mosquitoes that carried West Nile virus. Cabell County had the most. Positive pools were also found in Berkeley, Fayette, Kanawha, Putnam, Wayne, Wetzel and Wood counties.
As of August 22, 2017, West Nile virus activity had been reported in 45 states, including the states next to West Virginia. West Virginia had no human cases at that time. The state said that more virus in mosquitoes could mean more risk to people.
What the state asked of doctors
- Tell patients to remove places where mosquitoes breed around their homes, and to prevent mosquito bites.
- Think of West Nile virus in patients with encephalitis or meningitis through the end of the mosquito season (May to October).
- Use the preferred test: virus-specific IgM antibodies in spinal fluid or serum. These antibodies usually show up 3 to 8 days after illness starts.
- Report cases to the local health department in the patient’s home county within one week.
The advisory said about 8 of 10 infected people have no symptoms. Severe illness that affects the nervous system can cause death in some cases.
For local tips on mosquito bites, see suggestions for dealing with mosquito-borne illnesses and Health Advisory #159: Vector-borne Disease Season.
This information is from September 2017. It is kept here as a record and is not current advice. Check current guidance from the CDC or your doctor.