tips to avoid infection – breaking latest news

West Nile virus appeared earlier than usual this year: it was detected in May mosquitoes and wild birds, i.e. the main reservoirs. No cases of infection in humans have yet been reported, but experts say it is possible that the circulation of this and other insect-borne pathogens may increase in the coming weeksalso due to overflows and floods such as those that hit Emilia Romagna.

Stagnant water is associated with an increased risk of some infectious diseases, including mosquito-borne arboviruses: in addition to West Nile, endemic in Italy, viruses Dengue e Chikungunyawhich occur with sporadic outbreaks.

There is no vaccine for West Nile fever and the only way to protect yourself is avoid mosquito bites. Recommendations: use repellent products and wear long trousers and long-sleeved shirts when outdoors, especially at dawn and dusk; install mosquito nets on the windows and air-condition the rooms; often empty containers with stagnant water (buckets, flower pots and saucers, basins, bins) or cover them; change the water in the pet bowls often; empty paddling pools when not in use.

The West Nile fever it is caused by the homonymous virus of the Flaviviridae family, isolated for the first time in 1937 in Uganda, in the West Nile district (from which it takes its name). The virus is widespread in Africa, Western Asia, Europe, Australia and America. The reservoirs of the virus are wild birds and mosquitoes (most frequently of the Culex type), whose bites are the main means of transmission to humans. Other documented means of infection, albeit much rarer, are organ transplants, blood transfusions and mother-to-fetus transmission pregnant. West Nile fever is not passed from person to person. The virus also infects other mammals: especially horses, but in some cases also dogs, cats, rabbits and others.

The incubation period after the mosquito bite varies between 2 and 14 days, but can be as long as 21 days in subjects with immune system deficiencies. Most infected people show no symptoms. Among symptomatic cases, about 20% have fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, enlarged lymph nodes, skin manifestations. These disturbances can last a few days, in rare cases a few weeks. A mild fever is more frequent in children, while in young people the fever is moderately high, with redness of the eyes, headache and muscle pain. In the elderly and debilitated people the symptoms can be more severe. The heaviest ailments occur in less than 1% of infected people (1 in 150 people) and include high fever, severe headache, muscle weakness, disorientation, tremors, vision changes, numbness, seizures, up to paralysis and coma. Some neurological effects may be permanent. In one case in a thousand the virus can cause a lethal encephalitis. There is no specific therapy for West Nile fever. In most cases the symptoms go away on their own; in the most serious cases, hospitalization is required.

Diagnosis is carried out through laboratory tests for the search for antibodies. These antibodies can persist for even very long periods in sick subjects (up to a year), therefore the positivity to the tests can also indicate a previous infection. Samples collected within 8 days of symptom onset may therefore be negative it is advisable to repeat the test before ruling out the disease. Diagnosis can also be made by PCR (C-reactive protein) or viral culture of serum and cerebrospinal fluid samples.