Tuesday's announcement of two more West Nile Virus cases in Onondaga County is also a wake-up call to prevent it and other diseases spread by mosquitoes.
WAER spoke with Onondaga County Health Department Medical Director James Alexander who said people can help in several ways. One involves dead birds; if found and tested positive for the virus, it can sound an alert.
“It gives us an early indication of when the virus is active in the community,” he explained. “The birds are going to get infected and subsequently die from the virus well before people will start showing signs of disease, typically.”
Local residents who find abird that looks like it died within the past 24 hours, should be careful to wear gloves or use a plastic bag to collect it and bring it to the county’s Animal Disease Control Department. SUNY Upstate then does the testing.
Mosquito-borne diseases are nothing new in the region, He said. The Health Department tests for diseases in mosquitoes every year. While last year they uncovered more West Nile virus cases, none of those were in humans. This year, so far, they’ve found fewer total cases, but three were human cases.
Alexander added that preventing mosquito bites, starts at home.
“Part of the game to avoid mosquitoes is to keep them out of your yard and keep them from laying eggs and having the larvae and standing water in your yard,” he advised. “So, if you have areas that tend to have standing water, try to get rid of that.”
That might be an old tire, an unused birdbath or garden fountain, or a kid’s pool, in which standing water provides an environment for mosquito eggs and larvae.
He added people can use common sense ways to avoid mosquitoes – and their bites – by using repellant, fixing screens, avoiding being outside at dawn or dusk when the pests are more active, and covering up with long sleeves and pants.
Alexander warned mosquitoes in Central New York carry West Nile, Eastern Equine Encephalitis, Flanders and other viruses. He explained a person can carry the virus and not have symptoms. But in about 20% of the cases, symptoms can be serious, even deadly. And he noted there aren’t cures – only treatments for the symptoms once a person is infected.
