Ohio health department confims first human case of West Nile virus
COLUMBUS — Ohio’s first human case of West Nile virus in 2010 was confirmed today by the Ohio Department of Health, which also reported a sharp increase in the number of WNV-positive mosquitoes.
The patient, a 74-year-old male from Putnam County, is currently recovering. Meanwhile, the number of WNV-positive mosquito pools in the State of Ohio increased from 4 to 98, in the past month.
Because humans can only get WNV from the bite of an infected mosquito, ODH reminds Ohioans to take steps to help prevent infection.
Ohio has recorded human cases of WNV each year since 2002 when there were 441 cases. There were 108 in 2003, 12 in 2004, 61 in 2005, 48 in 2006, 23 in 2007, 15 in 2008 and 2 last year.