A person in Hays County has tested positive for West Nile virus, an illness transmitted through mosquitos. This is the first positive human case in Hays County this year.
The person lives in the 78610 ZIP code.
The Hays County Health Department was notified about the case Wednesday, almost a week after confirming mosquitos in the area carried the virus. According to HCHD’s press release, there were no positive mosquito samples found in Hays County last year.
A Williamson County resident also tested positive for West Nile virus in the past week. Thirteen mosquito traps in that county have tested positive so far this season.
Eighty percent of people who contract West Nile don’t experience symptoms. The other 20% might experience fever, headache, body aches, joint pain, vomiting, diarrhea, a skin rash on the torso and swollen lymph nodes. Individuals 50 or older may be at risk of developing a more severe form of the disease.
HCHD reminds residents that to prevent infection, they should use EPA-registered bug repellent; wear long, loose and light-colored clothing; and drain standing water. Mosquitoes can breed in pools as small as 1 teaspoon of water.
Hays County Epidemiologist Ian Harris reiterated that the virus is not contagious and humans are “dead-end hosts," meaning they can’t transmit the virus to each other.
