Image credit The Ark Hive

Number of victims of West Nile virus outbreak in North America has already reached 41 people. According to Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia most of the deaths claimed by the virus are reported in the state of Texas i.e. twenty one people have been killed so far there.

Current outbreak of fever is the most serious in U.S. history. Only in the last few weeks, 1118 cases have been recorded, 75 percent of which are registered in the states of Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, South Dakota and Oklahoma.

Doctors recommend taking preventive measures against mosquitoes, which are considered to be the main carriers of the virus. Doctors say that people over the age of 50 years are at greatest risk.

Last week, Texas announced the state of emergency. Mosquito insecticides are being sprayed in the populated areas, including, in Dallas.

West Nile virus was first identified in Uganda in 1937, and drug and or vaccine against it has been developed. Symptoms of the disease include fever, headache, fatigue and body aches, nausea, vomiting. Sometimes the infected patient may have rashes and swollen lymph nodes. Approximately one percent of infected people may develop serious neurological disease – encephalitis and meningitis. Mortality of the virus infection is about four percent.

First case of West Nile Virus was registered in the U.S. in 1999. At that time authorities in New York in order to fight the disease spreading mosquitoes sprayed the insecticide from helicopters over parks, fields and other areas of the city.

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