STANISLAUS – The Stanislaus County Health Services Agency has announced the second and third confirmed human cases of West Nile Virus (WNV) infection. The second case, a 61-year-old male, was without symptoms when he donated his blood, and the blood was confirmed positive after a routine blood screening. The blood was immediately removed from the blood supply.

“You do not get West Nile virus from donating blood,” stated Dr. John Walker, Stanislaus County Public Health Officer. “As the Public Health Department, we strongly encourage people to continue donating blood that is vital to the health of our community. We also encourage our county residents to continue precautions to prevent mosquito bites. Last year the finding of positive blood donors coincided with the period of highest risk for infection.”

The third affected county resident is a 40-year-old male with West Nile fever. He has not required hospitalization. These new human cases of WNV in Stanislaus County bring the statewide total to 40. So far this year, WNV has been detected in 41 counties and found in 443 dead birds and 13 horses.
WNV is not spread person-to-person and approximately 80 percent of those who are infected will have no symptoms. WNV is transmitted to humans and animals through a mosquito bite. Mosquitoes become infected when they feed on infected birds.

The county Mosquito Abatement Districts have already been very active with spraying to prevent mosquito breeding. Spraying began in March, and more than 149,000 acres in Stanislaus County have been sprayed already, and that number will continue to rise.

“We have received extra funding from the state this summer and used the money to purchase additional equipment for spraying,” said Lloyd Douglas, manager of the Eastside Mosquito Abatement District.

Mosquito control officials also continue to collect mosquito samples in order to monitor the population and the presence of WNV.

Since the beginning of August, the trend has been that the Culex Pipiens mosquito, commonly known as the house mosquito, are becoming infected with West Nile Virus. This same species of mosquito was responsible for the majority of the 92 human infections in Stanislaus County last year,” said Jerry Davis, manager of the Turlock Mosquito Abatement District. “House mosquitoes become much more active in and around peoples’ homes during this time of the season. Now it is especially important that people take steps to make their home an unfriendly environment for mosquitoes.”

These simple steps can help people protect themselves and others from mosquito bites and WNV:
· Eliminate sources of standing water. During warm weather, mosquitoes can breed within four days. Change the water in pet dishes and regularly replace water in birdbaths. Drill holes in tire swings so water can drain.

• Avoid spending time outside when mosquitoes are most active, at dawn and dusk, and especially for the first two hours after sunset.
• When outdoors, wear long pants, long-sleeved shirts and other protective clothing.
• Exclude mosquitoes from your home with tight fitting screens on doors and windows.
• Apply insect repellent containing the active ingredient DEET when outdoors, according to label instructions.
• In addition to DEET-based products, the CDC has recently recommended insect repellants containing oil of lemon eucalyptus and Picaridin.

For more information, call the West Nile virus hotline at (209) 558-8425 to hear recorded information in both English and Spanish. You can also visit www.stanemergency.com for WNV information. The website includes maps showing locations of WNV-infected mosquito samples, dead birds, and horses.

Report mosquito infestations to the East Side Mosquito Abatement District at (209) 522-4098 or the Turlock Mosquito Abatement District at (209) 634-1234. The State of California is still requesting that residents of Stanislaus County report dead birds to the state hotline at 1-877-WNV-BIRD. Birds of particular interest to the state are crows, ravens, magpies, jays and raptors (hawk or eagle). The public may also submit the information via the web site www.westnile.ca.gov.