West Nile Virus Detected in Decatur

Traps in Decatur and other parts of DeKalb County captured 74 collections of mosquitoes that tested positive for West Nile Virus through Friday, a big increase over the number found with the virus last year, according to data from the DeKalb County Board of Health.

The Board of Health has not reported any new cases of people who have contracted West Nile Virus in Decatur or Avondale Estates, but the board said a 79-year-old in Tucker has been infected. Tucker is about eight miles from Decatur.

This is the first human case of the potentially fatal disease this year in the county, and that the man is currently recovering at home, according to the Board of Health. His name and was not released and it was unclear where he contracted the virus.

DeKalb County has 24 mosquito traps that are checked weekly, according to information from the health department. From January to Friday, seventeen traps had yielded 74 collections containing  mosquitoes that tested positive for West Nile Virus, said Janette Willis, arbovirus coordinator for the DeKalb Health Department.

Each collection comes from a canister that holds up to 25 mosquitoes, and one or all of those insects might carry the virus, said Willis.

The number collected this year was a big increase over previous years. In 2010, only 26 positive collections were reported from January to October, when collections stopped, she said. The previous high was 2006, when 52 positive collections were reported.

A trap in Decatur brought in seven positive collections this year, with the last being Aug. 2, Willis said. A trap in Avondale Estates yielded three positive collections, with all coming the night of Aug. 3, she said.

She said the health department doesn't want to report locations of the traps.

Robert Leonard, a resident of Green Street near the Agnes Scott College campus, said Friday that a trap beside a nearby creek had captured mosquitoes that tested positive for WNV. The trap was recently moved, he said.

Leonard said the health department distributed pamphlets in the neighborhood.

In a written statement, the Board of Health's Vickie Elisa said more mosquitoes have been collected and tested positive for the virus this year than in previous years. She did not indicate in which parts of DeKalb County the collections took place.

"This has been a for West Nile virus activity," Elisa said. "Surveillance has shown an abundance of the mosquito species that can carry the virus."

S. Elizabeth Ford, district health director of the DeKalb Health Department, said of the Tucker case: “It is very unfortunate that one of our DeKalb residents has developed West Nile virus. I hope this will remind everyone to continue using precautions to avoid mosquito bites.”

The state’s only other case of a human with WNV is in Chatham County, the health department reported.

Elisa advises people to take the following precautions against being bitten by mosquitoes:

• Reduce outdoor exposure at dawn and dusk, when the mosquitoes that transmit West Nile virus are most active.
• Use an insect repellent containing DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus or IR3535. Apply according to label instructions.
• Spray clothing with products containing permethrin. Also apply according to label instructions.
• Wear long-sleeved shirts, long pants and socks when outdoors, particularly at dawn and dusk and in areas with large numbers of mosquitoes.
• Reduce mosquito breeding in your yard by eliminating standing water in gutters and items such as planters, toys, wheelbarrows and old tires.
• Discourage mosquitoes from resting in your yard by trimming tall grass, weeds and vines.
• Make sure window and door screens fit tightly to keep mosquitoes out of your home.

For more information, contact the DeKalb County Board of Health at 404-508- 7871.