Utahn gets West Nile

A man has contracted West Nile virus in Uintah County, marking the first reported human case of the mosquito-borne disease to occur within the state of Utah, public health officials announced Friday.

Health officials are protecting the man's identity and declined to provide details such as his residence and exactly where in Uintah County he was infected. The man contracted the disease this week and is recovering.

"People shouldn't panic," state epidemiologist Dr. Robert T. Rolfs said. "We said at the first of the year the disease was going to get here. This was expected."

A few other Utahns have been infected with West Nile, but they all contracted it out of state. This is the first case occurring inside Utah.

The West Nile virus itself was detected this summer in eight counties — Uintah, Carbon, Duchesne, Emery, Grand, Sanpete, Utah and Wayne — generally in mosquitos and horses, except for Grand County, where it was found in a dead crow.

West Nile is transmitted to both humans and horses by mosquito bites. Twelve of the 21 horses infected in the state were in Uintah County.

Rolfs said the virus will inevitably spread to Utah's other 21 counties, but short-term hope is nigh: Depending on the weather, October usually signals the end of the mosquito season.

As of Friday, 4,325 people in the United States have been infected with West Nile this year and 81 of those have died. People over age 50 are more likely to develop serious illness from the infection.

As to how Utah will handle next year's mosquito season, Rolfs said the state will continue an aggressive education and surveillance program. The Utah Department of Health, Department of Agriculture, local health departments, local mosquito abatement districts and the Division of Wildlife Resources are all collaborating to track and monitor West Nile in Utah.

People with severe flu-like symptoms suggesting encephalitis or meningitis should be tested for West Nile. Any outbreak of similar symptoms should be reported to the Utah Department of Health, regardless of cause, officials said.

Health officials stress that not every mosquito carries West Nile and not everyone bitten by a carrier mosquito will exhibit symptoms of the disease. It is estimated that only 20 percent of those who are infected show any symptoms, while one in 150 infected people have severe symptoms.