1st Human Case Of West Nile Virus Found In Suburban Cook County: IDPH

COOK COUNTY, IL — With six people dying as a result of contracting the West Nile virus in Illinois last year, health officials have been closely monitoring the disease this summer. On Wednesday, the Illinois Department of Public Health announced the first human case of 2024 in the state, occurring in suburban Cook County.

While the residence of the person has not been released, officials did say they are in their 60s and first started exhibiting symptoms in mid-June. IDPH typically sends the first positive human case to the Centers for Disease Control, and are currently waiting the results of confirmatory testing with that agency.

For comparison, the first human case in 2023 was reported in late June. In all, there were 119 human cases last summer, up from 34 cases in 2022.

In the meantime, IDPH has been tracking WNV-positive batches of birds and mosquitoes, and has reported 33 Illinois counties have had positive results. The agency says this is an early warning of the presence of WNV in the area. All cases are tracked through the West Nile virus dashboard.

"Summer in Illinois means mosquitos, and these mosquitos increase our risk of contracting vector-borne illnesses like West Nile Virus," IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra said in a news release. "We encourage all Illinois residents to 'Fight the Bite' and protect themselves and their loved ones from insect bites that can cause potentially serious illnesses."

The IDPH says it supports mosquito control efforts throughout Illinois by providing $2.8 million in funding to the 97 local health departments for vector surveillance and control activities. The funding covers and applying larvicide, working with local municipal governments and local news media regarding WNV prevention and education, and investigating mosquito production sites and nuisance mosquito complaints. The local health departments collect mosquitoes for WNV virus testing and also collect sick or dead birds for West Nile virus testing.

According to IDPH, WNV is transmitted through the bite of a Culex mosquito, or a typical mosquito, which has picked up the virus by feeding on an infected bird.

Common WNV symptoms include fever, nausea, headache and muscle aches, which may last from a few days to a few weeks. Officials said four out of five people infected with West Nile virus will not show any symptoms.

Severe illness can occur, including brain infections such as meningitis or encephalitis and paralysis or even death, in rare cases. People older than 50 and immunocompromised individuals are at higher risk for severe illness from WNV.

With no specific treatment for WNV or a vaccine, IDPH said it is "critically important" for people to minimize their risk of acquiring.

Through its "Fight the Bite" program, the IDPH recommends the following precautions:

• REDUCE — make sure doors and windows have tight-fitting screens. Repair or replace screens that have tears or other openings. Try to keep doors and windows shut. Eliminate, or refresh each week, all sources of standing water where mosquitoes can breed, including water in bird baths, ponds, flowerpots, wading pools, old tires, and any other containers.
• REPEL — when outdoors, wear shoes and socks, long pants and a light-colored, long-sleeved shirt, and apply an EPA-registered insect repellent that contains DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus, or IR 3535 according to label instructions. The CDC does not recommend use of products containing oil of lemon eucalyptus or para-menthane-diol on children under 3 years old. Consult a physician before using repellents on children under 3.
• REPORT — report locations where you see water sitting stagnant for more than a week such as roadside ditches, flooded yards, and similar locations that may produce mosquitoes. The local health department or city government may be able to add larvicide to the water, which will kill any mosquito larvae.