FARMINGTON -- West Nile is back. But health officials say maybe it never left.
Davis County Health and county mosquito abatement officials have discovered the presence of the West Nile virus in two mosquito pools in the northwest area of the county.
The pools testing positive were in west Kaysville and west Layton, according to county health officials.
"Now that we've got positive tests from two mosquito pools, we're stepping up the amount of spraying throughout the county beyond the already aggressive efforts that we've done so far this season," said Gary Hatch, district manager for the Mosquito Abatement District-Davis.
The positives indicate the threat of West Nile virus continues throughout the state, including Davis County, County Health Director Lewis R. Garrett said in a news release.
To lessen the chances of being bitten by a mosquito infected with West Nile, Garrett is encouraging the public to use a DEET-based mosquito repellent when outdoors between dusk and dawn as well as to wear long sleeves and long pants during those prime mosquito feeding times.
"A majority of the people infected with West Nile virus will experience very mild or no symptoms at all," Garrett said. "About 20 percent of those infected will develop a flu-like illness known as West Nile fever."
Garrett said a much smaller percentage of infected people will get a more severe form of the disease, characterized by severe headache, stiff neck, muscle weakness and confusion or disorientation.
"In rare cases, West Nile virus can be fatal," he said.
Davis County has had no West Nile virus cases turn fatal, said Bob Ballew, county health public information officer.
The county did have two human cases in 2008, six human cases in 2007 and 11 human cases in 2006, Ballew said. There have been no human cases of West Nile reported in the county in 2010, and there were no reported human cases of West Nile in the county in 2009, Ballew said.
Since the state started keeping records for West Nile cases in 2004, there have been fewer than 10 fatalities statewide related to the virus, said Jodee Baker, State Health Department epidemiologist.
Weber and Morgan counties mosquito abatement crews continue to test mosquito pools, but as of Tuesday there have been no pools testing positive for the virus, said Lori Buttars, Weber-Morgan County Health spokeswoman.
It is that time of year when West Nile can be present, and those outdoors should continue to apply DEET-based repellent from dusk to dawn where each individual is their own "last line of defense" from being bitten, she said.
At the beginning of the warmer season everyone is good about putting DEET on, but with the summer starting to wane and school beginning, Buttars said, there are those who fall out of that habit.
"Temperatures are still warm, and mosquitoes are still breeding," she said.
State health officials are reporting that to date Utah is having "a mild season" for West Nile.
"We have only 10 mosquito pools throughout the state, and no human or horse cases," Baker said. "(But) there is still some season left.
West Nile is firmly established in Utah, with each county over the years having a positive test, Baker said.
West Nile cases hit a peak statewide in 2006 with 174 human cases, including five fatalities that same year.
"We have gone down significantly since then in our number of cases," Baker said.
But the state of Arizona has had some fatalities this year related to West Nile, she said, adding, "It is still around."
Comments