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The Kane County Health Department has been alerted to mosquitoes that tested positive for West Nile Virus. This batch was collected by an independent contractor near Geneva and is the first that has tested positive in 2021.
West Nile virus is transmitted through the bite of a mosquito that has picked up the virus by feeding on an infected bird. Most people with the virus have no clinical symptoms of illness, but some may become ill three to 14 days after the bite of an infected mosquito.
Only about two persons out of 10 who are bitten by an infected mosquito will experience any illness. Illness from West Nile is usually mild and includes fever, headache and body aches, but serious illness, such as encephalitis and meningitis, and death are possible.
Persons older than 50 years of age have the highest risk of severe disease.
Although people usually notice mosquitoes during rainy conditions, those mosquitoes are commonly called floodwater or nuisance mosquitoes and typically do not carry West Nile virus.
In hot, dry weather, mosquitoes that do carry West Nile virus breed in stagnant water, like street catch basins and ditches, and multiply rapidly. Inspect your home and yard for sources of standing water where these mosquitoes are likely to breed.
The best way to prevent West Nile disease or any other mosquito-borne illness is to reduce the number of mosquitoes around your home and to take personal precautions to avoid mosquito bites. Precautions include:
For more information about West Nile virus, visit KaneHealth.com/Pages/West-Nile-Virus.aspx. Additional information is available on this page of the Illinois Department of Public Health’s website. The IDPH West Nile Virus Hotline at 866-369-9710 is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
SOURCE: Kane County Health Department news release
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