EDITORIAL: Time to pay attention to West Nile virus EDITORIAL: Time to pay attention to West Nile virus (August 25, 2004)

While terrorists may get the most headlines today, we face another serious threat right in our own back yards. It is brought to us by a garden-variety mosquito whose sting can transmit the West Nile virus, a disease that has no known cure and can be fatal to people, horses and birds.

The West Nile virus' first incursion into the U.S. came in New York five years ago. Since then, it has steadily made its way across the country and arrived in Southern California last year. Proof that the virus has made it to the Peninsula was found July 28, when an infected crow was found in Redwood City. So far, six people and some 60 horses have died from the virus in California, which can be contained only by taking serious, but not oppressive, preventive measures.

The forefront of the West Nile prevention effort on the Midpeninsula is San Mateo County's Mosquito Abatement District, or MAD, as the tiny department is known. With a miniscule $2 million annual budget, MAD has the job of reducing the threat of West Nile virus over the entire county, an area of thousands of square miles.

The challenge faced by MAD technician Stan Kamiya and his colleagues is immense, but as the first and virtually only official line of defense against West Nile in the county, we are fortunate to have them. However, as made clear in last week's Almanac cover story by staff writer Andrea Gemmet, much of the responsibility for controlling this dangerous disease rests with us, the general public.

The technology for controlling the mosquito carriers of West Nile is embarrassingly simple: eliminate the stagnant pools of water where they like to breed. Otherwise, the following precautions are advised: wear an insect repellent containing DEET, dress in long sleeves and long pants, and be especially vigilant at dusk and dawn, when mosquitoes that carry the virus are most active.

Public officials are most concerned about the rapid spread of the disease, as illustrated by the sudden increase in infected birds, particularly hawks, crows, jays and finches, which are dying over a large region. Birds can catch the disease by getting bitten by an infected mosquito or from eating other birds infected by the virus.

But despite the widening impact of the virus, health officials say only one person in 150 gets infected severely, and one in 20 will experience flu-like symptoms. Nevertheless, the one severely infected person will have serious neurological symptoms, like encephalitis or meningitis, and even paralysis, and there is no known treatment.

Horses are even more susceptible, with one-third of those infected dying or being euthanized as a result of the virus. However, equine vaccines are available and in most cases, horses that have been infected either did not receive any of the vaccine or had not completed a full course of treatment, consisting of three shots and one annual booster.

So far, it appears that the county's health department and mosquito abatement agency are doing everything possible to eliminate the threat of West Nile. But it is a big job, and while vigilance is the best line of defense, we urge county supervisors to keep a close watch on this effort and make sure that adequate resources are available.

West Nile is a serious health threat that should not be taken lightly. Take the proper precautions and make sure you eliminate standing water wherever you see it. Go to www.smcmad.org for information, and call 877-WNV-BIRD to report dead birds to the state.

E-mail a friend a link to this story.