Not only the West Nile Virus has infected residents in the United States, but also its neighbor to the north as several provinces in Canada have reported cases of infection due to the virus. Public health officials in Ontario have reported that 49 probable human cases of the disease have been spotted as of this […]
A public health office in Canada‘s Saskatchewan Province reported what appears to be the first human cases of West Nile virus in the country this year. Representatives from the Sun Country Health Region say that two people in southeastern Saskatchewan suffered mild forms of the disease and are now recovering. Apart from these two cases, […]
The Canadian province of Alberta has confirmed that one of its residents died due to West Nile virus), the first since 2007. The Alberta Health Services did not reveal much about the victim, except that the casualty lives in the southern part of the province. As of this posting, there are 10 cases of West […]
Reuters reports on Thursday that that a new strain of the West Nile Virus is spreading better and earlier across the country. This new strain may thrive on hot American Summers. According to a second team of researchers, a new strain has already completely overtaken the original strain. This new West Nile Virus strain is reportedly better suited to hotter weather. This means that outbreaks may worsen up north.According to Lyle Petersen who helps lead the West Nile surveillance at the CDC, this a…
There is a new finding that might provide the fight against the West Nile virus some positive boost. Researchers hailing from the Washington University School of Medicine have recently identified a new class of compounds that can effectively inhibit the replication of the said virus. The West Nile virus belongs to the flavivirus family of viruses which also includes the yellow fever virus and the dengue virus. The West Nile virus can infect not only humans but also horses and other vertebrate sp…
The West Nile virus quickly spread across North America after its introduction in 1999. It is theorized that the infection was introduced accidentally by an air traveler who was infected before he arrived in New York. The disease spread quickly through infected bird, as the mosquitoes spread the disease to mammals including humans. As of 2007, 47 of 48 mainland states in the US have cases of West Nile virus infections, 12 of which had greater than 10% mortality rates in certain years.West Nile v…
There are more than 2,500 species of mosquitoes around the world, about 200 of which can be found in North America. Meanwhile, 45 mosquito species are known to carry the West Nile virus, but some of the mosquitoes are more common carriers than others.Here are some of the common mosquito carriers of the West Nile virus in US and Canada.Culex pipiens – These species can be found in central and eastern United States except in Florida. Known as the northern house mosquito, they are common in urban a…