Mosquitoes are more than pesky, they’re also deadly. According to the Centers for Disease Control 1 in 150 people will get West Nile virus.

One person has already died in the state this year, because of the disease. While there are some warning signs, you need to really pay attention.

“Most people that have West Nile infection don’t have symptoms. I actually have some patients that get tested for West Nile and are surprised it shows that they have in the past and they had no idea,” said Fares Masannat, Avera Physician. 

Fares Masannat is an infectious disease physician with Avera Health. He says even though symptoms are less common, there are a few that show up within two weeks of being bitten by a virus carrying mosquito. 

“Headaches, fatigue, fever, some people have a rash. So the symptoms can be confused with a lot of other, different infections,” said Masannat. 

So how do you stay safe this time of year? The usual advice is to use bug spray with Deet and get rid of any standing water in your lawn.

However, this doesn’t work for everyone. Kids under two years old, for example, aren’t suppose to use Deet.

“It might be safe but we cannot claim it’s definitely safe, because it hasn’t been tested that well,” said Masannat, “You just try to cover their skin as much as possible when they’re outside so they’re not getting bit by mosquitoes.” 

Right now there is no vaccine for West Nile, or effective treatment. Masannat hopes more research can begin to bring down the number of infections.

“Even though it’s not the worst health problem that we have, but it’s still a significant health problem and it affects many parts of the country,” said Masannat. 

The risk of West Nile typically starts to drop with cooler weather. The South Dakota State Health Department will update the risk level on it’s website weekly.