Seattle woman tested positive for West Nile Virus

A woman in her forties is the first case of King Nile contracted locally in King County.

KIRO 7 learned that the woman had developed viral meningitis from the virus, an inflammation of the lining of the brain, which had been hospitalized in mid-September for a day and healed ever since. It is thought that she was bitten by an infected mosquito in the month of August.

Prior to this case, all King County residents who had reported West Nile virus had left the state or were traveling to eastern Washington, where infections tend to occur every year.

"We had it in birds," said Dr. Jeffrey Duchin of Seattle-King County Public Health. "C" He was found in a horse in 2006. It's a risk. Everyone should assume that our mosquitoes carry the West Nile virus. "

It is a virus without treatment.

"There is no treatment for any stage of West Nile virus, so the best thing to do is to prevent you from getting infected," Duchin said. "It's a very rare disease, so that's good. Most people completely. "

Duchin added that most infected people have no symptoms. About one in five suffers from what he calls West Nile Fever, an illness resembling the flu with symptoms such as headaches, muscle aches and fatigue. Less than 1% of people with the virus cause meningitis or other inflammations.

Other counties have followed the virus in animals. In August, the Washington Department of Health discovered the virus in Tacoma mosquitoes for the first time.

Mark Geiss, a family member of an employee of KIRO 7, developed encephalitis, a swelling of the brain, caused by West Nile a few years ago.

"When I arrived at the hospital, I really thought I was dying," he said. "I started having a headache, and a few hours later, it was a massive, horrible and disabling migraine. It was extremely, extremely nauseous.

It took Geiss two weeks to recover, then two weeks of rest and recovery at home.

These days, he tries to protect himself.

"Obviously, a mosquito spray, keeping it covered, does not matter," he says. "Mosquitoes are so thick in many parts of our country."

Duchin also recommends eliminating areas around the job or home where water stagnates, such as gutters or bins, where mosquitoes can breed.

But with the drop in temperatures, KIRO 7 reporter Linzi Sheldon asked: "For the moment, are we out of the most dangerous period, could you say, because it's colder, Is almost November? "

"Yeah, late October is not a risk period for West Nile virus," Duchin said. "It's usually late summer when mosquitoes tend to be the most common. But every year is different. So, if there are mosquitoes, take precautions … Even now, it is a good time to clean all the places where the water could stay and accumulate. "

Geiss acknowledges that his case was serious. And he hopes this is something that others should never live.

"I think of it from time to time, God, could it happen to me again or … it's a scary thing for people all over the world," he said. he declares.

It is unclear why the virus has moved west of Washington, but Duchin said that wetter springs, followed by long, hot, dry summers, were ideal conditions for mosquitoes.

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