Associated Press report
06/15/03

State health regulators say an upstate outdoorsman is [likely] South Carolina's [& North America's] first human case of West Nile virus this year.

The state Department of Health & Environmental Control (DHEC) says an Oconee County man bitten by mosquitoes while fishing was recently hospitalized with the disease. DHEC Commissioner C. Earl Hunter said the man is improving and was released from the hospital. In 2002, a woman in Union County was confirmed with the disease.

The agency says West Nile virus shows itself with flu-like symptoms such as headaches, swollen glands, muscle aches and a rash. "In most cases, the virus results in very mild disease and many people who may be exposed never become sick," Hunter said. The disease is spread when a mosquito bites an infected bird, then bites a human. The disease cannot be spread from person-to-person, Hunter said. Hunter says only one in 150 people bitten by an infected mosquito will become severely ill.

People should protect themselves against the disease by wearing long sleeves and long pants, and by using an insect repellent when outdoors. Residents should check their properties and areas for standing water where mosquitoes might breed.

DHEC asks anyone who finds dead crows, blue jays, cardinals and raptors like owls, hawks or eagles to call an agency office to see if the bird should be tested [for WNV].

Further information