Dateline: October 19, 2006

West Nile suspected cause of woman's illness

By Roger Estlack, Clarendon Enterprise

Family members of a Donley County woman have reported that she is in an Amarillo hospital suffering from the West Nile virus, but state and local health authorities as of Tuesday morning had not been notified of the case.

The elderly woman, whose identity cannot be published due to privacy concerns, lives just outside the northern city limit of Clarendon and was reportedly being taken off life support Tuesday. She had been hospitalized since October 2, a family member said.

The woman’s husband is also exhibiting symptoms that may indicate the disease, but the family was still awaiting the results of his tests, the Enterprise was told.

Officials with the Texas Department of State Health Services (TDSHS) in Canyon said the case had not been officially reported as of Tuesday morning. Matt Richardson of the Amarillo Bi-City-County Health Department said that his office would not be notified of a case involving a Donley County resident and that it may take several days for such a case to be reported to state officials.

Dr. John C. Howard with the Clarendon Family Medical Center had not been notified of the woman’s case, but he said this is a time of the year when the disease can be spread by mosquitoes.

“Less than one percent of people who are bitten by an infected mosquito will develop symptoms of the disease,” Howard said. “It is more likely to affect older people.”

Howard said most people who have the disease will never know it, but some indicators require medical attention.

“It’s usually a mild disease,” Howard said, “but if you have fever and a bad headache and may have been bitten by a mosquito, you should see a doctor. A blood test can confirm the presence of the virus.”

Any symptoms consistent with meningitis or encephalitis will result in hospitalization, Howard said.

According to the TDSHS web site, West Nile virus infections “usually are mild with flu-like symptoms including fever, headache, sore throat, body aches, and fatigue, occasionally with skin rash and swollen lymph glands.

Symptoms of more severe West Nile infections – encephalitis and meningitis – include headache, high fever, stiff neck, disorientation, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, coma, and paralysis.”

Howard said the reservoir for West Nile Virus is in birds and the disease is transferred to humans by mosquitoes. The virus has an incubation period of three to 14 days with a week being the average, he said. The doctor recommends people watch out for mosquitoes at dusk and dawn, use a repellent containing DEET, and wear clothes with long sleeves and light colors to avoid being bitten.

Clarendon city officials say they are actively spraying for mosquitoes but also said the public must do their part to take precautions.