NO HUMAN CASES OF WEST NILE IN STATE - Three Horses Infected

(09/20/2003)
Twenty-five of West Virginia's 55 counties have reported birds that have tested positive for the West Nile Virus.

Three horses have been diagnosed with the virus, two in Jefferson County and one in Hancock County.

The most recent counties to report are Marshall, Boone and Mason.

The other counties include Barbour, Berkeley, Cabell, Greenbrier, Jackson, Jefferson, Mineral, Monongalia, Morgan, Nicholas, Kanawha, Ohio, Pendleton, Preston, Putnam, Ritchie, Roane, Wayne, Webster, Wetzel, Wood and Wyoming.

No human cases of West Nile have been reported this year in West Virginia.

The mosquito-borne virus can cause flu-like symptoms in humans and potentially fatal swelling of the brain. The spread of the disease is expected to slack off as cooler temperatures slow mosquito activity and the winter approaches.