West Nile still threat

Terry Fusco’s first sign was a small rash on his arms.

Within a couple days it had spread across most of his body, plus he began running a fever, became weak and started seeing double.

Fusco ended up spending eight days in the hospital last August because of West Nile virus.

“It was just a helpless feeling,’’ said the 65-year-old Fusco from Shelby, Neb.

The virus has become less common since 2003 when it hit hard in Nebraska and other parts of the country. That year, the virus resulted in 1,994 reported cases and 27 deaths in Nebraska and, in Iowa, 147 cases and six deaths.

Last year, there were 51 cases and no deaths in Nebraska and five cases and no deaths in Iowa.

But the virus is still a threat, and it’s a mistake to become complacent just because the number of cases has dropped, said Annette Bredthauer, public health veterinarian for Nebraska.

The mosquitoes that carry the virus tend to increase toward late July and in August and people should take precautions, she said. Even though there have been more mosquitoes this summer because of all the wet weather, that doesn’t necessarily mean there will be more of the type that carry the virus, Bredthauer said.

The number of cases of West Nile has dropped since 2003, partly because some people have been exposed to the virus and have built up an immunity, said Ann Garvey, public health veterinarian for Iowa.

She said the number of cases also may be dropping because people are getting better at using repellent and taking other precautions such as avoiding going out at dawn and dusk when mosquitos are most active.

The virus is spread by the bite of a mosquito that has fed on an infected bird.

Most people infected by the virus will not develop any type of illness.

About 20 percent of people who become infected will develop West Nile fever. Symptoms include fever, headache, tiredness and body aches, occasionally with a skin rash on the trunk of the body and swollen lymph glands. While the illness can be as short as a few days, even healthy people have reported being sick for several weeks.

Less than 1 percent of people infected with the virus will develop a more severe disease, such as West Nile encephalitis or meningitis. Symptoms include headache, high fever, neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness and paralysis.

Fusco lost 25 pounds during his first month with the virus because he couldn’t keep food down. He was fed intravenously in the hospital.

Muscle weakness was one of his biggest symptoms. Even after he got out of the hospital he had to use a walker for a month. He was so weak his wife had to shave him and he sat on a chair in the shower.

He said he didn’t recover until early this year. The retired elementary school principal said if he hadn’t been retired when he got ill, he probably would have missed six months of work.

Fusco, who has three grown children and seven grandchildren, has always spent a lot of time outdoors gardening and fishing and figures that’s probably when he got bit by an infected mosquito.

He used to wear repellent occasionally, but now he always puts it on.

“I’m not taking any chances,’’ he said.

Contact the writer:

444-1122, michael.oconnor@owh.com

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