Health authorities in Tarrant County urge public to take precautions against West Nile virus – NBC 5 Dallas Fort Worth

Health authorities in Tarrant County are stepping up efforts to prevent the spread of the West Nile virus.

This week, ground-based spraying will take place in the unincorporated part of northwestern Tarrant County, officials said Wednesday. This corresponds to a sample of positive West Nile virus mosquitoes from the area.

“The data found on county mosquitoes show that 30% of mosquito pools have returned to positive. This is one of the three pools we are testing. For the Northeast Taranto, the same data. Is about 50%, half of the pool of positive mosquitoes, said Binny Taneja, Director of Public Health, Tarrant County, “This is a precursor and many would say that if all precautions were not taken now. This is an early warning sign that a case may be seen. It can potentially turn into an outbreak and we want to avoid another outbreak. We are already fed up with COVID I don’t want to treat West Nile.”

So far, a sample of 2,394 mosquitoes has been tested since the seasonal surveillance of the West Nile virus on April 1 began. A total of 235 samples in the Tarrant County area were virus positive.

of On July 21, the first and only human case of West Nile virus in Tarrant County this season was reported.. Officials said the case involved an elderly person with basic health conditions who died from Fort Worth. Due to privacy laws, no other details are disclosed.

Authorities say spraying will occur this week if the weather is nice Thursday and Friday, 9pm to 5am, after resident notification is complete.. Taneja has also expanded the spray zone radius for urban partners, but it only covers public facilities.

“If we don’t act together, we’re in trouble here. What I want to do with the community is to act against the West Nile. As you know, it’s something you can do at home,” he said. It was “The first thing I want you to do is buy those hose-based sprayers and spray them around the garden. Because the bees are attracted to them and we don’t want to kill them, Avoid plants that are flowering fruits. The population is already declining.”

Instead, he suggests spraying canopies of trees, planting, and things like grass. Health officials also recommend that property owners routinely drain the water that stands on their land, make sure there are no holes in screens and windows, and wear insect repellent outdoors.

“We need to take care of our own neighborhood and our backyard where mosquitoes breed and invade our homes. That’s an important message. Because the data on mosquito surveillance seems pretty bad. “We need to take that precaution now,” Taneja said.

According to health officials, the West Nile virus can affect anyone. However, people over the age of 50 are at increased risk of developing severe infections. About 20% of infected people develop fever with other symptoms such as headaches, body aches, joint aches, vomiting, diarrhea, and rashes. Most people with this type of illness recover completely, but fatigue and weakness last for weeks or months.

With the exception of the latest case, the last West Nile virus death in Tarrant County was reported in September 2018. The last human case was August 2019.

How to prevent mosquito bites

• dress Long-sleeved, pants outdoor: spray thin clothing with insect repellent for added protection.
• Diet: Make sure this ingredient is included in the insect repellent.
• drain Water the garden or neighborhood: Mosquitoes grow in stagnant water for more than three days.

To avoid being bitten by mosquitoes, avoid using it outdoors. evening And Dawn (4 Ds).. This is generally true for mosquitoes carrying the West Nile virus, but other types of mosquitoes that are likely to carry zika, dengue, chikungunya, etc. are active during the day. When you are outdoors, adjust your dress accordingly and wear a repellent containing DEET, picaridine, or lemon eucalyptus oil as your first line of defense against insect bites, regardless of the time of day