It's Summer and you've just been bitten by a mosquito.
You've been listening to the news and you've been hearing talk about the West Nile Virus
in your area.
So What is it?
Is it something that you need to worry about?
What are the Symptoms and what do you do if you do get it?
And most importantly, how do you keep from getting it.
To Find the answers to these questions, keep watching.
Welcome to Family Med, your medical home for practical and accurate information to help
your family make healthy decisions.
This is the Channel that focuses on Bringing Better Health to your home.
If you are new here, let me introduce myself.
I'm Doctor Erik Richardson, my passion is helping you cut through all the health information
clutter on the internet So you can have the knowledge you need to live a healthier life.
So Today we are going to be addressing some of the concerns and worries you have about
the West Nile Virus.
This is a sickness that we have been hearing more and more about.
It's something that you can catch just by being bitten by a mosquito.
We all can relate to that because who hasn't been bit before.
But before we talk about whether it is something you need to worry about let's talk just briefly
about what it is The West Nile virus is an infection that primary
affects birds but it can be spread to humans and other animals through mosquitos that have
previously bitten an infected bird.
It was first discovered in Uganda in 1937 but has been spreading through the world,
and the United States specifically since 1999.
Human cases have been reported in all 48 of the Contiguous United States.
In the US it typically lasts from the summer into the early fall.
Now, remember I told you that I was going to let you know if it is something that you
need to be worrying about??
Well, The great news about the West Nile Virus is that most people infected with it never
develop symptoms, and will not know that they have the virus.
It typically remains in the body for a few days until the immune system fights it off.
But if that was the case all the time then we wouldn't be talking about it would we?
So, If for some reason your body doesn't fight it off symptoms will start typically within
2-15 days from when you were bit by the infected mosquito.
So what are the symptoms then?
Of those bitten around 25 percent will develop what we call West Nile Fever.
This tends to be a short lived illness typically presenting with fever, headache, tiredness,
back pain, muscle aches, decreased appetite and a possible rash.
Sometimes you can get symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain.
Do any of those symptoms sound like any other illness you have?
Of course they do, most of our viral illness tend to present this way however you don't
get the typical nasal or respiratory symptoms that we see with a cold virus.
These symptoms can last for anywhere from a few days to several weeks.
More recent studies show that it can take up to a month for all symptoms to disappear.
One common symptom for most people who get it though is that they feel really tired for
several weeks afterwards.
For these types of symptoms, most people don't feel sick enough that they decide to visit
the doctor.
Usually, you can treat the symptoms with things like rest, lots of fluids, and medications
such as Acetaminophen or Ibuprofen.
So by now you may be thinking, well if that's all it is, then why are we even talking about
it.
Well the reason is, that there is a small percentage of people, maybe 1 percent of those
infected, that can go on to develop more significant illness.
In these people, the virus infects the brain and spinal cord which we call either an encephalitis
or infection of the brain or Meningitis which an infection of the lining of the brain.
This can happen to anybody but it is more common in those that are over 60 years old,
those who battling more advanced cancers and those taking immunosuppressant medications.
Signs of more severe disease would include headache, fever, disorientation, convulsions,
muscle weakness, coma and even paralysis.
These symptoms can last for weeks and in some can even be left with permanent neurological
damage.
Rarely, people have even died from this..
Like I said before, It is not common to have severe symptoms, so I don't want you to overly
worry about it.
In fact, Remember most people don't even have any symptoms, however its always good to protect
yourself and especially do so if you are at higher risk for it
So how do you know for sure if you have been infected with the West Nile Virus?
Well, the only way to really know is to have a blood test.
And honestly, we don't do a lot of testing for this.
It typically isn't necessary, however, if you are having more significant symptoms especially
the severe ones that have been described its important that you get in to your doctor or
if needed the emergency room and be tested.
Through a blood test or in severe cases, testing of the spinal fluid, we can get a more sure
diagnosis although it often times doesn't show up in the blood for about a week after
being infected.
Unfortunately even if you do have it, there isn't much more that can be done for it other
than what we call supportive care.
Because of that, it is key that we work mostly on prevention.
So What can you do to avoid getting the virus?
Well its pretty simple, don't get bit by mosquitoes.
Especially for those who live in an area that the west nile virus is more prevalent.
Remember, mosquitos are most active at dawn and at dusk so you need to be most careful
around these time.
Use a good insect repellent, wear pants and long sleeve shirts if you are likely to be
bit.
Also help prevent mosquitos from populating by draining areas of standing water like buckets,
bird baths, gutters, wading pools and pet dishes where mosquitos frequently lay eggs.
So Hopefully through this, you've learned that the West Nile virus isn't something that
you need to be overly worried about, however being aware of the significant symptoms that
can present and taking measures to prevent from being bit are some simple common sense
things that you can do to avoid this potentially serious disease.
Well, that will about do it for West Nile Virus.
hopefully you found the information we presented today useful.
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Remember my purpose in sharing this information for you is to educate you in things that you
can think about in trying to make decisions in your own health.
In no way should be taken as direct medical advice to you in your own situation.
Please consult your own doctor for concerns regarding your specific situation.
If you want to hear some other great advice about when you should go to the doctor, why
don't you check out my video on when you should be seen for your sore throat and when its
ok to stay home.
Click here to see what YouTube thinks you would be most interested in-try it out and
see if they are right!
So until next time this is FamilyMed with Dr Richardson.
And remember don't forget to take care of your body because it's the only one you have.