West Nile rears head in county

From the Thousand Oaks Acorn
August 16, 2018

One person in Ventura County has contracted West Nile virus, health officials said last week.

County Public Health Agency officials issued a news release Aug. 9 confirming the local case, but they did not disclose the patient’s city of residence or other details, citing patient-privacy rights.

As of Aug. 10, 19 people in California have become infected with the virus, compared to 22 human cases reported at this time last year.

So far this year no one has died from West Nile virus in California, state officials said.

On June 15, state Department of Public Health officials announced that the first human cases of West Nile virus this year involved four patients in Los Angeles, Riverside and Kern counties.

As of Aug. 10, the virus had been found in 33 California counties, compared to 31 counties a year ago. State health officials recorded 285 dead birds, 942 positive mosquito samples and 38 chickens infected with WNV, according to the state health agency.

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