Clinical Symptoms
When someone has been infected with West Nile Virus they will typically have one of three outcomes:
No Symptoms: Approximately 80 percent of people (about 4 out of 5) who are infected with WNV will not show any symptoms at all.
Milder Symptoms: Up to 20 percent of the people who become infected have symptoms such as fever, headache, and body aches.
Serious Symptoms: About one in 150 people infected with WNV will develop severe, neuroinvasive illness. The symptoms can include high fever, headache, neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, vision loss, numbness and paralysis.
Treatment
There is no vaccine or specific treatment for WNV infection. In cases with milder symptoms, people experience symptoms such as fever and aches that pass on their own. In more severe cases, people usually need to go to the hospital where they can receive supportive therapy.
Prevention
The easiest and best way to avoid WNV is to prevent mosquito breeding sites and bites.
- Eliminate mosquito breeding sites by removing and emptying sources of standing water.
- Apply EPA registered insect repellent to exposed skin.
- Spray clothing and supplies with permethrin, and utilize permethrin treated bed net, if applicable.
- Ensure windows and doors have screens and are sealed tight.
- Cover up-the more clothes you have on, the fewer bites you'll get.
Links
West Nile Virus Fact Sheet
Information Products on Mosquito-Borne Diseases and Control
Army Vector-borne Disease Report
CDC WNV Activity Map
Seek medical attention if you think you have been exposed to WNV and develop a high fever with severe headache.
