November 4, 2008

WEST NILE VIRUS SEASON ENDS
ON A HEALTHY NOTE IN PASADENA

When the California Department of Public Health announced the end of California’s 2008 West Nile Virus season Oct. 31, Pasadena Public Health Department reported that aggressive local and regional efforts kept the numbers of confirmed West Nile Virus human cases to three, the lowest reported number in the five years that WNV data has been tracked in Pasadena.

The third and most recent human case in Pasadena was confirmed last week when an elderly Pasadena resident was hospitalized.

There have been 345 cases reported in 48 of California’s 58 counties. These include 146 confirmed cases in Los Angeles County, including 55 cases from San Gabriel Valley. There were nine WNV related deaths in California this summer, including four in L.A. County. Due to the number of home foreclosures and non-maintained pools, public health experts worked aggressively to monitor sources for breeding mosquitoes, increasing the potential for higher numbers of reported cases.

Pasadena Public Health Department’s Environmental Health Division has vector control staff who use sound integrated mosquito management principles designed to minimize risk of WNV transmission and prevent infections in humans and domestic animals, thereby keeping the city’s residents safer from the threat of this infectious disease.
“Although the number of cases is low this year, Pasadena Public Health Department continues to urge residents to prevent mosquito bites by using mosquito repellent and eliminating standing water where mosquitoes can breed,” said Dr. Takashi Wada, public health director.

Appearing in California five years ago, West Nile Virus is transmitted to humans and animals through a mosquito bite. Mosquitoes become infected when they feed on infected birds. Most mosquitoes do not carry the virus and most people bitten by a mosquito are not exposed to the virus. The virus is not spread by person-to-person contact or directly from birds to humans. Most individuals who are infected with WNV will not experience any illness. However, individuals 50 years of age and older have a higher chance of getting sick and are more likely to develop serious symptoms when infected with WNV. Recent data also indicate that those with diabetes and/or hypertension are at greater risk for serious illness.

To learn more about West Nile Virus, visit www.cityofpasadena.net/publichealth or
call the Pasadena Public Health Department Environmental Health Division at
(626) 744-6004.

As an independent city-based health jurisdiction, Pasadena Public Health Department has been protecting the health of the greater Pasadena community for more than 115 years. For more information on its many programs, clinics and services, call
(626) 744-6000.