Also called: Also called: WNV
West Nile virus (WNV) is an infectious disease that first appeared in the United States in 1999. Infected mosquitoes spread the virus that causes it. People who contract WNV usually have no symptoms or mild symptoms. Those with symptoms may have a fever, headache, body aches, skin rash or swollen lymph glands.
If West Nile virus enters the brain, however, it can be deadly. It may cause inflammation of the brain, called encephalitis, or inflammation of the tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal cord, called meningitis.
Older people are most at risk. There are no specific vaccines or treatments for human WNV disease. The easiest and best way to avoid WNV is to prevent mosquito bites:
- Use insect repellent
- Get rid of mosquito breeding sites by emptying standing water from flower pots, buckets or barrels
- Stay indoors between dusk and dawn, when mosquitoes are most active
- Use screens on windows to keep mosquitoes out
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
- West Nile Virus: Questions and Answers(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/q&a.htm
-
West Nile Virus: What You Need to Know(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/wnv_factSheet.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/spanish/wnv_factSheet_Spanish.htm
- Fight the Bite!(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/index.htm
-
West Nile Virus(American Academy of Family Physicians) - http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/infections/common/viral/790.printerview.html
Also available in Spanish http://familydoctor.org/online/famdoces/home/common/infections/common/viral/790.printerview.html
- West Nile Virus(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/west-nile-virus/DS00438/METHOD=print&DSECTION=all
- Researchers Find Genes That Influence West Nile Virus(08/06/2008, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_67856.html
- Who Cares about Mosquito Bites? We Do.(07/07/2008, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/Features/WestNileVirus/
- FDA Approves First Fully Automated Test to Screen for West Nile Virus in Blood and Tissue Donors(Food and Drug Administration) - http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2007/NEW01578.html
-
Fight the Bite! Avoid Mosquito Bites to Avoid Infection(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/prevention_info.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/spanish/prevention_info_spanish.htm
- Five Common Myths about West Nile Virus(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/WNVmyths.htm
- Mosquito Control(Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Pesticide Programs) - http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/health/mosquitoes/
- What You Need to Know about Mosquito Repellent(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/mosquitorepellent.htm
- West Nile Virus Poliomyelitis(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/Poliomyelitis.htm
-
West Nile Virus and Dead Birds(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/wnv_birds.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/spanish/wnv_Birds_Spanish.htm
- West Nile Virus in the Workplace(National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) - http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/westnile/
-
West Nile Virus: Blood Transfusion, Organ Donation and Blood Donation Screening Information(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/transfusion.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/spanish/wnv_transfusion_spanish.htm
-
What You Should Know about West Nile Virus(American Veterinary Medical Association) - Links to PDF - http://www.avma.org/animal_health/brochures/wnv/wnv_brochure.asp
Also available in Spanish http://www.avma.org/animal_health/brochures/wnv/wnv_brochure_spanish.asp
- West Nile Virus Maps(U.S. Geological Survey) - http://diseasemaps.usgs.gov/wnv_us_human.html
-
ClinicalTrials.gov: West Nile Fever
(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22West+Nile+Fever%22
- Do People with West Nile Virus Infection Eventually Return to Normal Health?(American College of Physicians) - http://www.annals.org/cgi/content/full/149/4/I-34
-
NIAID's Role in Addressing West Nile Virus(National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) - http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/topics/westNile/default.htm
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
- Article: Prognosis after West Nile virus infection. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18711153&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Do people with West Nile virus infection eventually return to... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18711150&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: CXCR4 antagonism increases T cell trafficking in the central nervous... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18678898&tool=MedlinePlus
- West Nile Virus -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=west+nile+virus[majr]+OR+west+nile+virus+vaccines[mh]+OR+west+nile+fever[majr]+AND+humans[mh]+AND+english[la]+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- West Nile Virus Glossary(Cornell University, Dept. of Communication) - http://environmentalrisk.cornell.edu/WNV/WNVGlossary.php
- Links to State and Local Government West Nile Virus Web Sites(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/city_states.htm
-
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - http://www.cdc.gov/
Also available in Spanish http://www.cdc.gov/spanish/
-
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases - http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/
- 2008 West Nile Virus Activity in the United States(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/Mapsactivity/surv&control08Maps.htm
- Buzz-z-z-z on West Nile Virus(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.bam.gov/sub_diseases/diseases_westnile.html
-
What's West Nile Virus?(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/kid/ill_injure/aches/west_nile.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/kid/en_espanol/cuerpo/west_nile_esp.html
-
West Nile Virus(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/infections/bacterial_viral/west_nile.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/infecciones/west_nile_esp.html
-
West Nile Virus, Pregnancy and Breast-Feeding(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/breastfeeding.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/spanish/wnv_breast_Spanish.htm
- Encephalitis - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/encephalitis.html
- Brain and Nerves - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/brainandnerves.html
- Infections - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/infections.html
The primary NIH organization for research on West Nile Virus is the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases - http://www.niaid.nih.gov/
West Nile Virus - Multiple Languages - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/languages/westnilevirus.html