Thursday, June 23, 2005
The Daily Northwestern - Heat and risk of West Nile virus at normal levels
The Daily Northwestern - Heat and risk of West Nile virus at normal levels: "Heat and risk of West Nile virus at normal levels
By Scott Gordon
June 23, 2005
The risk of contracting West Nile virus is returning to normal levels with the heat after two of Cook County's coolest summers ever, health agencies said this week.
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced that five samples of Cook County mosquitoes -- two of them from Evanston -- tested positive for the virus last week. So far, no humans have tested positive for the virus in Illinois.
Health officials across Illinois thought West Nile had disappeared after 2002, when the virus killed 66 people in Illinois -- more than in any other state, said Lynn Haramis, an entymologist for the state health department.
'It didn't go away any place. It's still here,' Haramis said. 'We had two cool summers in a row' in 2003 and 2004, but this year temperatures are back in the 90s -- ideal conditions for the two species of mosquito that carry the virus to humans from infected birds.
The risk to humans is as unpredictable as the weather. Heat makes water stagnate, allowing mosquitoes to breed, and scientists think heat may also increase the number of individual virus organisms an infected mosquito is carrying.
On Wednesday, the North Shore Mosquito Abatement district sprayed pesticides to kill adult mosquitoes in Skokie and Evanston, according to an Evanston press release.
The district, which collects and tests mosquitoes daily in 13 north suburbs including Evanston, tries to stop the spread of West Nile by spraying for adult mosquitoes, treating street drains where water stagnates and telling people to wear long sleeves, long pants and insect repellent, said district spokesman David Zazara.
But it's harder to wipe out mosquito breeding grounds on private property. These include backyard drains, puddles, ponds and old tires.
More mosquitoes doesn't necessarily mean greater risk, Hara"
By Scott Gordon
June 23, 2005
The risk of contracting West Nile virus is returning to normal levels with the heat after two of Cook County's coolest summers ever, health agencies said this week.
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced that five samples of Cook County mosquitoes -- two of them from Evanston -- tested positive for the virus last week. So far, no humans have tested positive for the virus in Illinois.
Health officials across Illinois thought West Nile had disappeared after 2002, when the virus killed 66 people in Illinois -- more than in any other state, said Lynn Haramis, an entymologist for the state health department.
'It didn't go away any place. It's still here,' Haramis said. 'We had two cool summers in a row' in 2003 and 2004, but this year temperatures are back in the 90s -- ideal conditions for the two species of mosquito that carry the virus to humans from infected birds.
The risk to humans is as unpredictable as the weather. Heat makes water stagnate, allowing mosquitoes to breed, and scientists think heat may also increase the number of individual virus organisms an infected mosquito is carrying.
On Wednesday, the North Shore Mosquito Abatement district sprayed pesticides to kill adult mosquitoes in Skokie and Evanston, according to an Evanston press release.
The district, which collects and tests mosquitoes daily in 13 north suburbs including Evanston, tries to stop the spread of West Nile by spraying for adult mosquitoes, treating street drains where water stagnates and telling people to wear long sleeves, long pants and insect repellent, said district spokesman David Zazara.
But it's harder to wipe out mosquito breeding grounds on private property. These include backyard drains, puddles, ponds and old tires.
More mosquitoes doesn't necessarily mean greater risk, Hara"
# posted by dark master : 6/23/2005 09:48:00 AM
