Posted on 10/05/2001 11:33:04 PM PDT by Ymani Cricket
Edited on 05/11/2004 5:33:13 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
For the first time, the potentially deadly West Nile virus has been found in the St. Louis area, health officials said Friday.
The virus was identified in five dead crows found in St. Louis and St. Louis County. It has spread steadily westward since it killed seven people in 1999 in the New York area.
(Excerpt) Read more at stltoday.com ...
In 1999, the New York area saw 62 cases of severe disease, including seven deaths. Last year, 21 cases were reported, including two deaths in the New York City area. Officials have reported 25 cases so far this year in the New York area, Maryland, Florida and Georgia. A woman in Atlanta died.
The following link disagrees with the previous number of cases in the article and adds further info, including questions and answers about the Nile Virus. Scientists now say that mosquitoes may have infected 13,000 New Yorkers with the West Nile virus in 1999 -- far more than the originally confirmed 62 cases. In fact, the virus has spread as far south as Florida. Are you at risk? How do you know if you have been infected with the West Nile virus? And what can you do? WebMD turned to experts at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for answers to your questions....A major reason why public health agencies are concerned about West Nile virus is that it is a new infection that has been spreading to different parts of the country. The earlier there is awareness of this disease, the more we can limit its harmful effects in the future.
My own personal notes here as well:
I first heard about the Nile Virus when my wife, who is an RN, told me about it when she came home from work one night and told me about it. Apparently, it had been a discussion at work and she brought home info that other hospital staff found as well. What prompted that discussion was the fact that the Nile Virus wasn't expected to reach Missouri for a few more years, yet it began to show up in Illinois. I haven't thought much about it until tonight when I heard a report on the radio news that it was found in Missouri.
There are a number of threads from the month of august here on FR if you want to search the archives as well.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.