OTTAWA – The LaSalle County Health Department received confirmation that a crow from Mendota tested positive for West Nile virus. The bird was collected and tested on Aug. 21. Environmental Health staff was able to conduct the confirmatory test on the bird at the Health Department. In July, mosquitoes collected from LaSalle tested positive for the virus.

West Nile virus is transmitted through the bite of a Culex pipiens mosquito, commonly called a house mosquito, which has picked up the virus by feeding on an infected bird. Common West Nile virus symptoms include fever, nausea, headache and muscle aches. Symptoms may last from a few days to a few weeks. Four out of five people infected with West Nile virus will not show any symptoms. However, in rare cases, severe illness including meningitis or encephalitis, or even death, can occur. People older than 50 and immune-compromised individuals are at higher risk for severe illness from West Nile virus.  

Precautions include practicing the three “R’s” – reduce, repel and report.

Reduce - make sure doors and windows have tight-fitting screens. Repair or replace screens that have tears or other openings. Try to keep doors and windows shut. Eliminate, or refresh each week, all sources of standing water where mosquitoes can breed, including water in bird baths, ponds, flowerpots, wading pools, old tires, and any other containers.

Repel - when outdoors, wear shoes and socks, long pants and a long-sleeved shirt, and apply insect repellent that contains DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus, or IR 3535 according to label instructions. Consult a physician before using repellents on infants.

Report – report locations where you see water sitting stagnant for more than a week such as roadside ditches, flooded yards, and similar locations that may produce mosquitoes. The local health department or city government may be able to add larvicide to the water, which will kill any mosquito eggs.

A complete listing of West Nile virus statistics for LaSalle County is available on the Health Department’s website at www.lasallecounty.org. A statewide listing is available at http://www.dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/diseases-and-conditions/west-nile-virus/surveillance.