West Nile Virus in South Florida

Florida residents are under fresh alert concerning the West Nile Virus which was found in a small community known as Jupiter Farms in western Florida. It is a mosquito-borne disease and provokes symptoms such as fever, pain, fatigue, and headache. The Florida Department of Health took some blood samples from fowls which are constantly checked to know whether there was an alert and risk that people would get infected by the virus.

Some precautions that the health department has alerted people to undertake are:

• Have your windows and door screened and use air conditioning if you are able.
• In case you want to get outdoors use an insect repellent that is made of DEET or picardin.
• In the mornings and evenings when the mosquitoes are very active, put on socks, long pants, and light long sleeved shirts.
• Drain all stagnant water where mosquitoes can lay their eggs around homes and where people work.

The disease has claimed eight lives of late according to Centre for Disease Control. A woman in her 60s from Chicago has been diagnosed as well as four others in the past few weeks. The officials are warning against an increase of mosquitoes this tear being a wet one and expected high temperatures.

How the West Nile Virus is Spread

It spreads when mosquitoes become infected after feeding on infected birds. When the infected mosquitoes bite people and animals it again spread the virus. The virus cannot be spread by coughing, sneezing or just touching live animals.

Symptoms of West Nile Virus

The symptoms are very rare but a few people may suffer from a headache, fever, body and joint pains, vomiting, diarrhea. The symptoms, according to CDC, starts to show from two to 15 days after the virus has been acquired. Full recovery is evident for most people. There are few cases where patients are left with weakness and fatigue which can go up to a month.

The West Nile Virus can sometimes cause fatal illnesses which affect the central nervous system or meningitis- this is when the fluid that surrounds the brain and the spinal cord are infected. Some symptoms that come with this are convulsions, disorientation, weak muscles, paralysis, and comma. However, this only occurs to less than one percent of the affected people.

Old people who suffer from illnesses like cancer, diabetes or high blood pressure are at a greater risk of being infected.

Treatment of West Nile Virus

Evaluation by the doctor is the fast step. A test can then be done on blood and cerebrospinal fluid to determine whether the body is developing from an antibody as a result of the presence of the virus. In a severe case, one may need to be hospitalized for proper monitoring and treatment. West Nile Virus does not have any vaccine or antiviral treatment.