Missouri in the heart of America

Sedelia Democrat @ http://www.sedaliademocrat.com/News/286129356594345.htm
From the Tuesday, May 31, 2005 issue:
Prevention is key in West Nile fight
By Beth O'Malley
The Sedalia Democrat
West Nile virus is a concern in Missouri, although the disease's name may sound exotic.
Dianne Fluty, of Sedalia, became sick with the most severe form of the mosquito-borne disease in 2002, while recovering from back surgery.
"Of course, it was pretty new to the area," Mrs. Fluty said. She was in and out of the emergency room several times, and eventually went to a hospital in Columbia, where she had 274 tests while doctors tried to find out what was wrong.
Mrs. Fluty had headaches, neck stiffness, muscle weakness and other symptoms. For a while, she said she felt her body would shut down.
"I'm not the same from having contracted it," she said. Doctors diagnosed her encephalitis and meningitis, both the result of the virus.
Now, she makes sure to get rid of standing water on her property, wears long sleeves and insect repellent when she goes outside and takes other steps to avoid mosquito bites.
Ms. Fluty is the only person in Pettis County who has had a confirmed case of West Nile. Missouri had 37 confirmed cases of West Nile fever and disease in 2004; two people died, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site.
The majority of people who get West Nile show no symptoms, others will have a fever, headache, fatigue and perhaps a rash, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site. A few will contract the most serious form of the disease.
The virus has appeared in birds in Pettis County since 2003, said JoAnn Martin, regional epidemiology specialist with the Pettis County Health Center. If the virus is found in dead birds, then mosquitoes in the area are carrying it, she said. The virus has been found in the state since 1999, she said.
omalley@sedaliademocrat.com