Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
"We finally had a bird test positive for the West Nile virus," Bob Weaver, Kosciusko County Health Department administrator, said today.
The crow was collected in Plain Township Aug. 26. The State Health Department notified the local health department late Friday that the bird tested positive.
Weaver said the health department is mosquito-larvae sighting on a regular basis to try to control the problem. They are checking stagnant bodies of water where mosquito larvae live and this week will concentrate their efforts in Plain Township.
"We can just assume it's in our county," Weaver said of the virus. Since surrounding counties have already identified birds with the virus, he said, it was only a matter of time before one was identified with the virus in Kosciusko County.
According to information provided by Weaver from the Indiana State Department of Health, so far this year, nearly all counties in Indiana have had positive test results for the West Nile virus. On Sept. 4, state health officials announced continuing evidence of an outbreak of West Nile virus in Indiana. A 52-year-old individual from Elkhart County and three more Allen County individuals - a 46-year-old, a 54-year-old and a 56-year old - were identified as probable human cases of the virus. The death of the 56-year-old Allen County resident is under investigation. At this time, there is no clear cause of death and preliminary findings from an autopsy were inconclusive. Further tests are needed.
On Aug. 9, the Centers for Disease Control confirmed a 46-year-old resident of Wabash County as the first case of the virus in Indiana. Confirmation on several other probable Indiana cases is still pending.
Once the state department gets a positive test result in a county, they do not test birds further. If anyone finds a dead bird in the county, Weaver said, they should double bag it and then trash it or bury it.
No other animals or people have been positively identified as having the West Nile virus, Weaver said, in Kosciusko County.
"So far, all we have is the bird," he said.
State health officials are urging all Indiana residents to take proper precautions to protect themselves from possible exposure to infected mosquitoes, including the safe use of mosquito repellents containing DEET.
West Nile virus can be transmitted to a human only by a mosquito that has first bitten an infected bird. A person bitten by an infected mosquito may show symptoms three to 15 days after the bite.
Most people infected with the virus will have either no symptoms or mild symptoms. A few individuals may have a more severe form of the disease - encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) or meningitis (inflammation of the tissues that cover the brain and spinal cord). West Nile virus can have these symptoms: high fever, headache, stiff neck, muscle weakness or paralysis and confusion.
Most people have the very mild form of the disease. Although the virus has been reported in people ranging in age from 9 months to 94 years, severe disease often has been present in individuals 50 and over or those with weakened immune systems. There is no specific treatment for West Nile virus and no vaccine is available for people.
Daily updates on positive results for the virus and a virus surveillance map are available on the State Department of Health's Web site at www.in.gov/isdh and click on the image in the center of the page.
