Human case of West Nile Virus confirmed in Clark County

UPDATE @ 1:30 p.m. 

The Clark County Combined Health District confirms there is one human case of West Nile Virus in the county, according to Larry Shaffer, the Environmental Director at the district.

Shaffer said the condition of the patient was not known.

Earlier on Wednesday, the health district said five more cases of the virus in mosquitoes had been discovered, raising the total number of positive cases in 2017 to nine in Clark County.

FIRST REPORT:

Five more samples of mosquitoes have tested positive for West Nile Virus in Clark County, according to a release from the Clark County Combined Health District.

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The samples were collected from multiple locations in Springfield and in German Twp. The five positive samples now bring the total number of samples to nine positive samples for the virus in 2017 in Clark County, according to the health district.

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The Clark County Combined Health District said the department has sent alerts to the local medical community ‘to facilitate quicker human diagnosis of West Nile Virus.’ Anyone who feels ill with some of the symptoms of the virus are also urged to see a physician.

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80 percent of people infected with West Nile Virus will not show any symptoms according to officials, but there is no way to know in advance if one will develop an illness or not. Symptoms usually show up from three to 14 days after people are bitten by the infected mosquito, the health district said.

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The severe symptoms of West Nile Virus can include high fever, headache, neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, vision loss, numbness and paralysis. These symptoms may last several weeks and neurological effects may be permanent.

Up to 20 percent of people who become infected will have milder symptoms such as fever, headache, body aches, nausea, vomiting and sometimes swollen lymph glands or a skin rash on the chest, stomach and back. Symptoms can last for a few days to as long as several weeks.

We’ll update this page with more details as they become available.