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West Nile virus found in Chatham Co. NC



This is from the Raleigh News & Observer
http://www.news-observer.com/

------- Forwarded message follows -------

October 21, 2000

The News & Observer  

West Nile virus found in Chatham  

By Sarah Avery; STAFF WRITER  

Page: A1  

A dead crow found by a biologist at Jordan Lake last month has tested 
positive for the West Nile virus, marking the first incidence of the 
mosquito-borne disease in North Carolina, state health officials 
announced Friday.  

The virus, which caused a panic in the summer of 1999 when it was 
discovered in New York, has been moving steadily southward since. It was 
reported in Maryland this past summer, and just last week, a dead bird in 
Virginia was found to be infected. North Carolina is now the southernmost 
state affected.  

"This is not a surprise," said Dr. Dennis McBride, state health director. 
Because the illness is carried by migratory birds, he said, it was only a 
matter of time before it spread to North Carolina and beyond.  

McBride said the state will not spray pesticides to kill mosquitoes 
because colder weather is naturally reducing the insect's populations. 
But, he said, the state will increase surveillance in Chatham County. And 
he urged people who will be outdoors to cover up and use repellents.  

As for next year, he said, the state will take into account the virus 
during mosquito eradication efforts.  

"We have a long history in North Carolina of managing mosquito-borne 
illnesses," he said, noting that Eastern equine encephalitis, which is 
also carried by birds, has been a threat here for years. That virus is 
fatal in 50 percent of cases.  

West Nile virus is mild in the vast majority of instances. The Centers 
for Disease Control and Prevention report that fewer than 1 percent of 
people infected with the virus develop severe sickness. Of those who do 
become badly ill, 3 percent to 15 percent die.  

In New York a year ago, West Nile virus was responsible for seven deaths, 
primarily among the elderly and people with suppressed immune systems. 
Another 62 people developed severe illness. This year through September, 
according to the CDC, 17 cases have been reported, with one death.  

Symptoms include fever, headache, body aches and, occasionally, skin rash 
and swollen lymph glands.  

Barry Engber, a medical entomologist with the state Division of 
Environmental Health, said many people who are exposed to West Nile virus 
don't even know it. Once they've been exposed, their body develops 
antibodies, and they become immune.  

"Here, we haven't been exposed to it because it's so new," Engber said. 
"In areas where it is more common, it usually hits younger children 
hardest. We'll probably start seeing changes across the country as the 
virus becomes more common; crows won't die, for instance."  

Crows, for reasons scientists don't understand, are particularly 
susceptible to the disease, so the dead bird at Jordan Lake was 
immediately suspect. The state had been alerting sportsmen, scientists 
and others to be alert for dead crows.  

"Our public education efforts paid off," McBride said. "A year ago, no 
one would have paid attention to a dead bird in Chatham County."  

But crows aren't the only animals at risk. West Nile virus also afflicts 
horses in high numbers, as well as dogs, cats, bats, squirrels, raccoons 
and domestic rabbits. The virus cannot be transmitted, however, through 
contact with infected animals.  

Scientists aren't sure how the virus came into the United States in 1999. 
It was first described in Uganda in 1937 and is common in Africa, Eastern 
Europe, West Asia and the Middle East.  

The U.S. outbreak centered on Queens, and Engber, who went there to 
collect mosquito specimens, said he has a theory that the first bug came 
in on an airplane that landed at LaGuardia International Airport.  

"But there's no telling," he said.  

State health officials urged people to report dead birds to the Public 
Health Pest Management Section by calling (877) 790-1747, sending e-mail 
to NCWNV@NCmail.net, or going online at 
www.deh.enr.state.nc.us/phpm/deadbirdform/index.html  

###  

West Nile virus:  

Transmission: The virus is transmitted by the bite of mosquitoes infected 
with it.  

Symptoms: Most infections are mild, and symptoms include fever, headache 
and body aches. Occasionally there is a skin rash and swollen lymph 
glands. More severe infections may be marked by headache, high fever, 
neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, 
muscle weakness, paralysis and, rarely, death.  

Cases: In 1999, 62 cases of severe disease, including seven deaths, 
occurred in the New York area. In 2000, 17 cases have been reported 
through September, including one death.  

Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention  

  Section: News
  Edition: Final
  Estimated Printed Pages: 3

  Index Terms:
  NC
  health
  West Nile virus
  Chatham County
  Jordan Lake

  Copyright 2000 by The News & Observer Pub. Co. 

------- End of forwarded message -------

I would have posted just the link, but the N&O has moved to a new, user-
unfriendly archive system. (For example, the URL for this article is 
http://archives10.newsbank.com/cgi-
bin2/libs/fresults.pl/RLEC?p_state=v6vqa6.1.1&p_text1=west%20nile%20virus&
p_product=RLEC&p_nb_id=C66Q59BOOTcyMzA3MTM4LjI5MDQzOjE6MTI6MTUyLjMuMTIuMTk
y&p_nb_lastdb=RLEC&p_d=RLEC&p_lang=English&p_nb_bcnt=0&p_thfield=ALL&p_plu
ral=no&p_f_type=keyword&p_nb_SortChoice=Best&productType=webNews&p_nb_date
offset=&%5B+Search+%5D.x=63&%5B+Search+%5D.y=12 )


-- 
Charles W. "Will" Cook                  w 919-660-7423
http://www.duke.edu/~cwcook            cwcook@duke.edu
Biology Dept., Duke Univ., Box 90340, Durham, NC 27708