BOULDER, Colo.—Nearly twice as many mosquitoes are carrying the virus that produces West Nile disease in the Longmont area this summer.
The number of mosquitoes with the disease is up 170 percent so far this summer. This week’s count is up 237 percent compared with the same week last July.
“At this point and time, the positive mosquito pools are in Longmont, but that doesn’t mean there’s not infected mosquitoes in other areas. Most infected insects can travel 20 miles. We feel that if we are finding them in one area, it’s just a matter of time,” said Linda Wilson, an epidemiologist with the county health department.
Two human cases of the disease have been identified in the state, one in Logan County and the other in Cheyenne County. Neither died.
El Paso County reported mosquitoes collected from the Fountain Valley area tested positive for the virus.
Nationally, a total of 26 cases have been reported in 11 states. South Dakota leads the nation with seven.
Health officials recommend that people in infected areas stay indoors at dawn and dusk and wear mosquito repellant when in wet areas.
Fever, headache and neck stiffness are among the more common symptoms. In more serious cases, blindness, paralysis’s and inflammation of the brain have been reported.
Last year seven people died of West Nile in Colorado. In 2003, Colorado led the nation with 63 deaths and 2,947 cases. In most cases, the disease is most deadly the first time it hits an area.
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Information from: Daily Camera,
