Stay Healthy

The West Nile virus can hit someone suddenly and without warning. That is how it was for 72 year old Jack Austin who said that he did not even remember a mosquito even biting him. Austin - a Duarte resident - spent nine days in the hospital being treated for the virus and told reporters that he did not even remember this stay.

“One day I was fine, and the next day I fell and hit my head and was out of it,” he said. “The virus came on - boom - and it hit me fast.” Austin is recovering well and is now back at his home and walking again with the use of a cane. Doctors say that it will be a slow recovery - but they expect him to take to it well.

But as Los Angeles County reported its first West Nile virus death of the year Friday, Austin’s sister, Elaine Wille, shared health officials’ concerns that Southern Californians have become complacent about the mosquito-transmitted disease. “I know you can have a heart attack and die,” Wille said. “But a mosquito bite?”

Statewide, there have been four deaths so far this year, all in Southern California, including two in Orange County and one in San Bernardino County. The peak season for infections is from August to October. The Los Angeles County man who died earlier this month was 83 and lived in the southeastern part of the county. County officials did not release a name or other details.

Close to 20% of those people that are infected will have a serious effect of the neuroinvasive form of the disease. This can cause meningitis, encephalitis, and death. Those who are over 50 and chronically ill will have a higher risk of dying. Officials are telling residents to use insect repellent, place screens on all of their windows, and to dispose of standing water.