A Nassau County man from the Town of Hempstead is Long Island’s first human West Nile virus (WNV) case, according to county health officials Friday.
The man of at least 60 years of age was hospitalized in mid-August and is now recovering.
Most individuals infected with WNV will not have any symptoms. People that do develop illness will usually have any combination of fever, headache, body aches, skin rash and swollen lymph glands. Thesesymptoms generally appear two to 14 days following the bite of an infected mosquito.
Less than one percent of persons exposed to the virus will develop more severe infections, with symptoms such as headache, high fever, neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness and paralysis. In rare instances, WNV can be fatal. Persons over 50 years of age have the highest risk of developing more severe disease. People who are immunocompromised may also be at high risk of WNV infection.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as of September 2, a total of 44 states and the District of Columbia have reported West Nile virus infections in people, birds, or mosquitoes. Overall, 399 cases of West Nile virus disease in people have been reported to CDC. Of these, 214 (54%) were classified as neuroinvasive disease (such as meningitis or encephalitis) and 185 (46%) were classified as non-neuroinvasive disease. There has been 16 deaths reported nationwide. For more infectious disease news and information, visit and “like” the Infectious Disease News Facebook page
