A Santa Clara County resident died from a rare case of West Nile virus, a mosquito-borne illness, public health officials said.
David Pu’u/Getty ImagesA Santa Clara County resident died after a long battle with West Nile virus, officials said. The individual contracted the virus in the greater Bay Area, the county’s Public Health Department said in a news release Wednesday.
Earlier in October, officials reported that two invasive, aggressive Aedes aegypti mosquitoes were trapped in San Jose for the first time ever. After discovering them near an intersection, the district took an “all-hands-on-deck approach” to eradicating the blood-sucking insects, as they can transmit diseases such as dengue, chikungunya, Zika and yellow fever. Studies suggest that A. aegypti can also transmit West Nile virus, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, but it’s still unclear how the virus was transmitted and specifically where the Santa Clara County resident contracted it.
Even though the disease likely originated in Uganda, West Nile virus is surprisingly common in the U.S., particularly in California, government data shows. As of Oct. 28, there have been 106 human cases of West Nile virus in the state this year. Most people who contract the virus, however, do not have symptoms, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said, and fatal cases are even rarer. Only 1 in 5 people who contract West Nile virus develop symptoms like fever, body aches and vomiting, while 1 in 150 experience severe illness.
Seven people have died from West Nile virus in California this year as of Oct. 27, government data shows, while more than 300 people have died from the virus since 2003.
While the state Department of Public Health says West Nile virus is “a problem that is here to stay,” residents can help reduce the spread of mosquitoes by removing stagnant water from their properties, the Santa Clara County Vector Control District said.
Santa Clara County spokespeople did not immediately respond to SFGATE’s request for comment.