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The health authorities of Spain are attentive to patients carrying the West Nile virus (WNV), which already leaves dozens of cases in at least three provinces of that country.
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And although these outbreaks occur at the same time as Spain and other European countries are experiencing new waves of infections with the new coronavirus, The truth is that WNV has great differences, the main one being that it is not transmitted between humans.
According to a fact sheet produced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the United States, it is a potentially serious disease and a seasonal threat, as it worsens in the summer and continues until fall.
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This virus has been documented it is transmitted mainly through infected mosquitoes that bite humans after feeding on infected birds.
In very rare cases, West Nile virus has also been transmitted through blood transfusions, organ transplants, breastfeeding, and even during pregnancy from mother to child. And it is clear that it is not transmitted through physical contact.
WNV was isolated in 1937 in Uganda and later detected in the Middle East in the 1950s. It was introduced in 1999 in North America, where it spread rapidly and caused hundreds of casualties at the time. generally deceased due to meningitis or encephalitis.
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Symptoms
According to the CDC, about one in every 150 infected people will become seriously ill. And serious symptoms can include high fever, headache, stiff neck, stupor, disorientation, tremors, seizures, muscle weakness, loss of vision, numbness, and paralysis. “These symptoms can last several weeks and the neurological effects can be permanent,” says the entity.
Most people have no symptoms, and one in five will have symptoms such as fever, headache and body pain, nausea and vomiting, occasionally swollen lymph glands, or a skin rash on the chest, abdomen, and back. All these annoyances usually last a few days.
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All of these signs generally appear 3 to 14 days after being bitten by the infected mosquito.
The risk
The CDC explains that people over 50 are at higher risk of getting seriously ill from this virus and therefore should be especially careful about mosquito bites. “The longer you are outdoors, the greater the chance that you will be bitten by an infected mosquito. If you spend a lot of time outdoors, whether for work or fun, take extra care to avoid mosquito bites. “
At the same time, they indicate that the risk of contracting the virus through medical procedures, blood transfusions or organ transplants is very low. And the risk of a fetus or baby being infected while breastfeeding is still under evaluation.
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It should be noted that, according to the National Institute of Health (INS), no cases of this virus have yet been registered in Colombia.
However, it is a communicable disease of interest to the country “since the geographical location, the diversity of reservoirs, vectors and climatological characteristics of our country are conditions that can favor its entry and development.”
HEALTH UNIT
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