A California woman was unable to walk after contracting West Nile virus from a mosquito bite.
Susan Corie of Roseville has been hospitalized for nearly a month as she undergoes physical therapy, according to CBS News Sacramento.
Corie said she started experiencing symptoms, including a fever and muscle cramps in her legs. As her disease progressed, she began to have trouble moving. When she collapsed on the way to the bathroom at home, her husband decided to take her to the emergency room, where she was diagnosed with the mosquito-borne illness on September 11.
“I was in the hospital for four and a half weeks because I got bitten by a mosquito,” Corie told CBS News Sacramento over the weekend.
“I didn’t really know much about it or how it affected people,” she said of the virus.
According to news reports, the region’s wet winter has created an ideal environment for high mosquito populations. As of Friday, 205 cases have been reported in California, six of which have been fatal, according to the California Department of Public Health.
Sacramento County has the second highest number of cases with 19, followed by Los Angeles County with 18.
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West Nile virus is transmitted through mosquito bites.
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About 80% of people who are infected with West Nile virus do not develop symptoms, according to the Sacramento Department of Health Services. For those who experience symptoms — which include fever, body aches, headache, joint pain, vomiting, diarrhea and rash — most recover within days to weeks.
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However, about one in 150 people will develop serious symptoms, which can include high fever, stiff neck, muscle weakness, coma, tremors, convulsions, vision loss, numbness and paralysis. Some of the neurological effects can be permanent, and the virus can even lead to death in some patients.
Although there is no specific treatment for West Nile virus, people with more severe symptoms are advised to seek supportive medical care such as intravenous fluids and breathing assistance.
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California is not the only state to have reported cases of the virus. So far this year, 1,645 people in 44 states have been diagnosed with the disease, according to the CDC. Marks an increase from 2022, when a total of 1,126 cases were reported in the US
In August, Daniel Markowski, a technical adviser to the American Mosquito Control Association, told CNN that his team was seeing “pretty big” warning signs of the virus spreading.
“The number of mosquitoes that have hatched after the spring snowmelt is pretty huge in a lot of states, whether it’s Colorado, Utah or California,” he said. “You’re at the right temperature, the right mosquito population, and the right time of year for localized outbreaks.”
The virus spreads after a mosquito bites an infected bird and then bites a human.
The CDC advises people to protect themselves by using insect repellents that contain DEET, Picaridin, IR3535, oil of lemon eucalyptus, or para-menthane-diol, but notes that the latter two ingredients are not recommended for children under 3.
The agency also suggests wearing long-sleeved shirts and pants when outside and using mosquito nets to cover strollers and baby carriers.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education