Laptop Battery The federal government on Thursday reported the first known case of a baby who contracted West Nile virus from its mother before birth.
West Nile Virus causes some victims to become seriously ill with encephalitis or meningitis, according to Cuyahoga County health officials. But many people have been infected without knowing. "Many victims have no symptoms and experience no ill effects from West Nile Virus, " Picker said. "Upon exposure, the chances of contracting West Nile Virus are rare." He also said that pesticides are sprayed 20 feet from a truck in the street and never make it to back yards.
Thinkpad The single case is not cause for alarm, considering that the U.S. this year suffered the world's largest reported outbreak ever of central nervous infections from the West Nile virus, says Lyle Petersen of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. ''Many pregnant women were undoubtedly exposed to the virus,'' Petersen says. ''The fact that we haven't seen a great deal of suspect cases is fairly reassuring.''
Brault said this makes it easier for the West Nile virus to adapt to rapidly changing environments. The study found that the death rate among crows exposed to the more virulent strain of the virus was 94 percent, compared to 31 percent among crows exposed to a less virulent version, AFP reported. In 2006, 4, 200 people in the United States were infected with the West Nile virus and 177 died. So far this year, only about a dozen deaths have been reported, but the number of infections has increased fourfold compared to the same time last year.
Microsoft More than 2,300 U.S. cases of West Nile encephalitis and meningitis have been reported this year, he says. The virus first appeared in the USA in 1999 and is typically spread by mosquitoes, but it can also be spread by blood transfusions, organ transplants and, now, mother to fetus. CDC officials suspect it may also be spread by breast milk. No matter the method, few infected with West Nile actually develop symptoms.
The most preventative treatment against West Nile virus for horses is a vaccination, according to the Department of Agriculture Secretary Charles M. Kuperus. "We recommend that horse owners have their horses vaccinated against the potentially deadly disease, " he said. Bruner said five dead crows have tested positive for West Nile virus, out of the 20 that have been submitted to the state for evaluation so far.
Laptop Computers The infected baby was born full-term last fall to a 20-year-old woman in Onondaga County, N.Y., the CDC says.
Meanwhile, Arkansas health officials reported the first suspected human case of West Nile virus in the state Monday. Dr. Fay Boozman, director of the Arkansas Department of Health, would not identify a man thought to be infected with the potentially fatal virus, Louisiana borderline. Four people in Louisiana have died this summer of West Nile, like symptoms and sometimes potentially fatal swelling of the brain. Most of the victims have been older people or those with weak immune systems.
Laptop Computer The woman was hospitalized Aug. 29 with fever, severe headache, blurred vision, abdominal and back pain and vomiting. A CAT scan of her head, a sonogram of the fetus and routine tests of blood and amniocentesis fluid were normal. With persistent leg weakness, the woman left the hospital Sept. 14 against her doctors' advice.
Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of Scientists Spot Deadly West Nile Virus Mutation A single genetic mutation causes the West Nile virus to become far more virulent, which leads to an increased risk of death in birds and likely in humans as well, concludes a U.S. study in the journal Nature.
Desktop Computer She was readmitted Sept. 16 after a fall. A blood test detected antibodies to the West Nile virus, and she was diagnosed with encephalitis. About five weeks later, the woman delivered a baby who initially appeared to be normal.
Notebooks Soon after, though, doctors noticed problems with the newborn's retinas, leading to MRI scans that showed severe tissue loss in parts of the baby's brain. A blood sample tested positive for West Nile virus antibodies, confirming that the baby had been infected.
Lenovo Doctors ruled out other infections as the cause of the brain abnormalities, and the woman had no known risk factors for such birth defects, says Dan O'Leary, a CDC medical epidemiologist.
Hard Drive ''It's very possible that West Nile virus was the cause of this baby's neurological deficit,'' Petersen says. ''With only one case, it's really impossible to determine cause and effect.''
Travelstar Infections of fetuses with other mosquito-borne viruses related to West Nile have been linked to miscarriages or severe illnesses in infants, he says.
Gateway The CDC is following several pregnant women who developed West Nile illnesses, Petersen says. So far, he says, he knows of one pregnant woman who contracted West Nile encephalitis and delivered a healthy, uninfected baby.
Laptop Parts West Nile might also be spread from mother to baby through breast milk. In one case, a woman received blood from an infected donor shortly after giving birth. Her baby then tested positive for West Nile antibodies. Even so, O'Leary says, transmission through breast milk hasn't been proven.
Software By Rita Rubin
USA Today - 12/20/2002
Topic: Pesticides
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