Your Health Matters
By Claudia Parks, R.N.

We heard it on the news a week or so ago! "A confirmed case of West Nile Virus in Cobb County!" This is the time of year (before the chill sets in) that we are rushing to enjoy the outdoors with BBQs, gardening, swimming pools and hikes and with this we must remember to protect our self from mosquitoes. The mosquito season in north Georgia is usually from late spring to fall. Those little "female" monsters can really smack you with annoying bites! This kind of news always gets us concerned- "little things" have a way of turning into something BIG!

HERE ARE SOME FACTS ABOUT MOSQUITOES:

Not all kinds of mosquitoes bite humans, many feed only on animals.

Only female mosquitoes bite.

Mosquitoes need water to breed. Almost anything (small or large) that will hold water for one week can breed mosquitoes- and they usually stay close to where they breed.

The mosquitoes that carry West Nile Virus do not fly far from where they breed.

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO PROTECT YOURSELF?

Use mosquito repellent with DEET, picaridin, or oil of lemon eucalyptus on exposed skin and products containing permethrin on clothes. Follow label directions. Do not use products that contain more than 10% DEET on children, or more than 30% DEET on adults. Consult a physician before using DEET on infants or pregnant women.

When weather permits, wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants whenever you are outdoors.

Place mosquito netting over infant carriers when you are outdoors with infants.

Consider staying indoors at dawn, dusk, and in the early evening, which are peak mosquito biting times.

Install or repair window and door screens so that mosquitoes cannot get indoors.

At least once or twice a week, empty water from flowerpots, pet food and water dishes, birdbaths, swimming pool covers, buckets, barrels, and cans.

Check for clogged rain gutters and clean them out.

Remove discarded tires, and other items that could collect water.

Be sure to check for containers or trash in places that may be hard to see, such as under bushes or under you home.

Throw larvicides into retention/detention ponds and other small bodies of water that cannot be drained.

Contact your county public health department or mosquito control for help.

NOTE: Vitamin B and "ultrasonic" devices are NOT effective in preventing mosquito bites. (According to the CDC).

WHAT IS WEST NILE VIRUS? West Nile virus (WNV) is an infectious disease that first appeared in the United States in 1999. Infected mosquitoes spread the virus that causes it. People who contract WNV usually have no symptoms or mild symptoms. Those with symptoms may have a fever, headache, body aches, skin rash or swollen lymph glands. IF West Nile virus enters the brain, however, it can be deadly. It may cause inflammation of the brain, called encephalitis, or inflammation of the tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal cord, called meningitis. People typically develop symptoms between 3 and 14 days after the infected mosquito bites them.

Most people infected with WNV show no signs of the disease but about 1 in 150 to 1 in 350 infected people will develop serious symptoms, including encephalitis. Since the introduction of the virus, the reported number of human cases of serious WNV in the United States has grown steadily from 62 in 1999 to 4,269 in 2006. (FDA)

HOW DOES WEST NILE VIRUS SPREAD? (1) Most often, by the bite of an infected mosquitoes. Mosquitoes become infected when they feed on infected birds. Infected mosquitoes can then spread WNV to humans and other animals when they bite. (2) Transfusions, Transplants, and Mother-to-Child. In a very small number of cases, WNV also has been spread through blood transfusions, organ transplants, breastfeeding and even during pregnancy from mother to baby. (3) NOT through touching. WNV is not spread through casual contact such as touching, or kissing a person with the virus.

GOOD NEWS! Just released on August 28, 2007 from the FDA: "The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced approval of a second test for the detection of West Nile virus in blood and organs." This should make us feels somewhat safer! Several groups are working on developing a vaccine against the WNV. Protect yourself and those folks around you- get rid of breeding areas!

Claudia Parks, RN, is a former doctor's office and emergency room nurse and retired as an educator from Fulton County Schools. She writes Your Health Matters as a public service; the information here is designed to help you make informed choices about your health. It is not intended as a substitute for the advice of your physician. Claudia and her husband now live in the north Georgia Mountains, near Blairsville. Claudia can be reach at yhm@windstream.net