West Nile may be more of a threat than most thought

[Evi]

Mosquito-borne virus is causing paralysis in a surprising number of healthy adults.

WASHINGTON -- Patricia Heller was super-healthy, an avid skier and competitive bicyclist. So when she collapsed in the street after a daylong bike ride, she first shrugged off the weakness as cramps.

By the next morning, Heller\'s left leg was completely paralyzed. It was West Nile virus, from a mosquito bite the Colorado woman doesn\'t even remember. She would need months of grueling therapy to walk again and today, almost two years later, still isn\'t fully recovered.

West Nile was long considered a serious problem only for the elderly and frail, and more of a nuisance illness for everyone else. Now a surprising number of patients like Heller shows the virus is more threatening than widely believed -- and new research finds that even so-called mild cases of West Nile fever can impair people for weeks or months.

It\'s sobering news as the nation gears up for a seventh season of the mosquito-borne virus.

West Nile virus had stricken abroad for decades, from the tip of Africa to Europe and throughout Asia, before it appeared in New York City in 1999 and began an inexorable march across this country. Since then, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have counted more than 16,600 human cases and 654 deaths.

Severe illness still is rare, considering that 80 percent of people infected never show symptoms.

But last year, about a third of the West Nile cases reported to CDC had neurologic complications like meningitis or encephalitis. Those are most common in older adults.

Then there are patients like the athletic Heller, who came down with West Nile\'s most perplexing complication: poliolike paralysis or severe muscle weakness that often strikes healthy people in their 30s, 40s and 50s. They may show no other symptoms before a limb suddenly quits working. Sometimes, the paralysis leads to respiratory failure.

Some doctors believe it\'s frequently mistaken for a stroke or other paralyzing ailment.

What\'s happening? In much of the world, West Nile is a fairly mild illness. But the form working its way through the United States appears similar to a more virulent Israeli strain, something not initially apparent to health workers.

There is no vaccine yet, or approved West Nile treatment. The best protection is to avoid mosquitoes, using repellent whenever you\'re outdoors and not letting puddles collect in flower pots, wading pools or other spots where mosquitoes can breed.

Anyone with symptoms of serious illness, high fever, severe headache, confusion or difficulty thinking, stiff neck, severe muscle weakness or tremors, should see a doctor right away.

For those who suffer paralysis, prompt physical therapy is crucial, too, advises Dr. Mazen Dimachkie of the University of Texas Medical School in Houston.

That therapy is what Heller credits with her ability to walk again, and she\'s keeping it up in hopes of one day also being able to run again. Meanwhile, she advises everyone she meets to slather on the bug spray.

Mosquitoes are f*cking bitches.

[Jumpman]

"West Nile may be more of a threat than most thought"

That\'s what they want you to think.

[GmanJoe]

I hate mostquitos. Whether they\'re virus free or not.

[clips]

i find it amazing that mosquitoes that bite hiv infected indivuals, cannot pass the infected blood to another person. maybe this is because when they do feed on the infected individual, they only feed once and feed at another time...don\'t quote me on that tho...i just know that they can\'t pass the virus on...

[Evi]

Originally posted by clips
i find it amazing that mosquitoes that bite hiv infected indivuals, cannot pass the infected blood to another person. maybe this is because when they do feed on the infected individual, they only feed once and feed at another time...don\'t quote me on that tho...i just know that they can\'t pass the virus on...

I think the HIV dies once it gets inside the mosquito.

That\'s what they want you to think.

I live in Arizona where this sh*t is the worst.