State: West Nile virus confirmed in 57-year-old man, making it 5th case this summer

State health officials have confirmed West Nile in another Delawarean, making it the fifth case this summer. 

This is the highest number of West Nile cases in the past three years. Just last week, the state announced its third case of the disease.

Officials fear there will be more infections to come because mosquito season has yet to peak, and humans get the virus through a mosquito bite. 

While the Division of Public Health has confirmed the fifth case in a 57-year-old New Castle County man, it is still awaiting confirmation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, officials said. 

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In 2017, the first case of West Nile in two years was confirmed in a Kent County woman. The worst year that health officials could recall was 2012, when nine Delawareans were diagnosed with the virus. 

The other 2018 cases involved four older Delawareans. Three are from New Castle County, and the other is from Sussex. 

Since a majority of people who have the virus do not develop symptoms, it is likely there are more reported cases in Delaware, said Jennifer Brestel, a spokeswoman for the Division of Public Health.

Symptoms in humans include headache, body aches, a skin rash on the chest or back and swollen lymph glands, health officials said. Those who experience these symptoms should see their doctor immediately.

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The virus, which can be fatal, is particularly hard on people who are older and have weaker immune systems. Nearly 80 percent of the people infected with the virus will not become ill. Less than 20 percent of people infected will develop West Nile fever with mild symptoms. One in 150 people infected will develop a severe infection, which can include meningitis.

There are no human vaccines, but there are vaccines for horses.

The only way a person can get West Nile virus is if they are bitten by a mosquito carrying the virus, officials said. People who are older and have weaker immune systems tend to experience the most serious consequences of the virus. 

Health officials are urging people to apply EPA-approved bug repellent whenever they go outside and to cover their arms and legs.

The severity of one's West Nile case isn't dependent on the number of infected mosquitoes he or she has been bitten by, Brestel said.

"It only takes one," she said.  

This summer, the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control has seen an increase in the virus found in wild birds and sentinel chickens, officials said. The large amount of rain Delaware experienced this spring and summer led to an increase in mosquito activity. 

This month, the Mosquito Control Section discovered the state's first eastern equine encephalitis-positive sentinel chicken at a station in Sussex County. 

Equine encephalitis is more severe and rarer than West Nile, health officials said. The viruses are transmitted by mosquitoes typically in summer and fall, with the peak season spanning mid-August to mid-October.

Contact Meredith Newman at (302) 324-2386 or mnewman@delawareonline.com and on Twitter @MereNewman.

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