West Nile Virus 'mosquito pools' found in SE Pa.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health said that 20 of 25 “mosquito pools” to test positive for West Nile Virus were located in Delaware County with additional pools found in Philadelphia, Bucks, Montgomery, and Lancaster Counties. “This year, mosquito sampling is showing earlier and more frequent evidence of WNV circulation in Southeastern Pennsylvania than in recent years,” the state health department stated.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health said that 20 of 25 "mosquito pools" to test positive for West Nile Virus were located in Delaware County with additional pools found in Philadelphia, Bucks, Montgomery, and Lancaster Counties.
"This year, mosquito sampling is showing earlier and more frequent evidence of WNV circulation in Southeastern Pennsylvania than in recent years," the state health department stated.
Thursday the Philadelphia Department of Public Health issued a health advisory that it has identified the city's first "mosquito pool" to test positive for West Nile Virus this year.
The advisory, issued to health care providers, stated that while no human cases of the virus have been identified the detection of an unusually high number of pools at this point in the summer by the Pennsylvania Department of Health suggesting a higher risk of human infection this summer.
While most people infected with West Nile Virus do not get symptoms, about 20 percent develop illnesses characterized by fever, headaches, aching muscles and/or gastrointestinal problems. In most cases the illness resolves within two to 14 days.
Fewer than one in 100 cases of the virus develop so-called neuroinvasive diseases such as meningitis or encephalitis. The risk of developing these more dangerous illness increases with age and is greatest among those 60 and above.
The city health department noted that there are no specific treatments for the virus and that prevention is the best way to avoid a potentially dangerous problem. The department recommended using insect repellants containing no more than 30 percent DEET, and said that products with up to 10 percent DEET can be safely used on children and infants more than two months old.
DEET – N,N-Diethyl-meta-toluamide – is an effective insect repellant but is a neurotoxin if swallowed, so be careful if you use a product containing it, especially if you put it on your young kids.
The state identified steps to eliminate the number of mosquitos in standing water around homes:
Dispose of tin cans, plastic containers, ceramic pots, discarded tires, or any object on your property that could collect standing water. Drill holes in the bottom of recycling containers left outdoors;
Have roof gutters cleaned every year, particularly if the leaves from nearby trees have a tendency to clog the drains;
Turn over plastic wading pools and wheelbarrows when not in use;
Do not let water stagnate in birdbaths;
Clean and chlorinate swimming pools and remove standing water from pool covers;
So far this year 10 human cases of West Nile Virus have been found across the U.S., in Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Mississippi, North Dakota, South Dakota and Texas.
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