Should you be worried about West Nile this summer?

As travellers to Greece have been warned to take precautions against West Nile virus, people across Canada are being advised to do the same.

Greek health officials recently urged holidaymakers to take steps to minimize their chances of being bitten by infected mosquitos following a never-seen-before outbreak of the disease last year.

“There have been enough cases to know that this is now a public health issue,” said Danai Pervanidou, head of the Hellenic Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (KEELPNO). “The virus has established itself in Greece through migratory birds and we are recommending that everyone takes personal protective measures such as wearing long sleeves, avoiding places with stagnant water and using mosquito nets and repellent.”

A record 316 people were infected with the virus in Greece last year, causing death in 50.

In Canada, Saskatchewan recently issued an alert to residents advising them to reduce their risk, while Quebec’s Ministry of Health and Social Services announced that the region of Montérégie saw the highest number of cases of West Nile virus in the province in 2018 (76) since it first appeared in 2002.

West Nile virus is usually spread by the bite of a mosquito that has fed on an infected bird.

While most people infected with virus won’t develop any signs or will only experience minor symptoms, such as fever and headache, some people develop a life-threatening illness that includes inflammation of the spinal cord or brain.

There are several ways to prevent mosquito bites, whether you’re on a Greek Island or a Prairie field.

Dr. Muhammad Morshed, a clinical microbiologist and the program head of zoonotic diseases, emerging pathogens and parasitology, at the B.C. Centres for Disease Control Laboratory, suggests wearing light-coloured clothing and long-sleeved shirts and full-length pants rather than T-shirts, tank tops, shorts, and skirts.

Ensuring that windows are closed or have proper screens will also help keep biting insects at bay.

Those steps can be challenging when it’s hot out, however; Morshed also recommends wearing an insect repellent that contains N,N-Diethyl-meta-toluamide, or Deet.

“My personal advice and what I do is use the mosquito insect repellent that is the Deet kind,” Morshed says. “It’s very safe. It’s been well studied by Health Canada. That is safe product.”

Much controversy and concern surround this particular substance. Consumer Reports’ review of scientific literature is one that points to Deet’s safety, when used as directed.

Morshed, who’s also a clinical professor in the UBC department of pathology and laboratory medicine, who has travelled extensively and hails from Bangladesh, has other suggestions.

“I recommend a mosquito net,” Morshed says. “I myself use mosquito net every night when I go home.”

Ensuring there’s no standing water in or near a home or room is also paramount. Morshed even points to vases or bowls of flowers that some hotel or vacation-rental owners put in rooms with good intentions to welcome guests as a potential breeding or resting ground for insects.

“I some places, they [hotel staff] change the flower in each room every day but they never change the water,” he says. “I always ask to please take it out.”

Staying indoors (with covered or screened windows) at dawn, early evening, and dusk, when mosquitos are especially active, can also minimize the risk of being bitten.

Signs of West Nile virus vary. Mild symptoms, which typically show up two to 15 days after infection, include fever, headache, body aches, mild rash, and swollen lymph glands.

More serious symptoms include those that affect the nervous-system tissues in the brain and spinal cord. Look for rapid onset of intense headache, high fever, stiff neck, nausea and/or vomiting, trouble swallowing, drowsiness, confusion, poor coordination, muscle weakness or paralysis, and loss of consciousness.

Severe cases can be fatal.

According to Health Canada, fewer than one percent of people infected with the virus will develop such severe effects. Adults aged 50 and up and people with underlying conditions or compromised immune systems, however, are at greater risk.

“If people get high fever or other symptoms, they should seek medical attention immediately,” Morshed says. “Talk to your family doctor or go to the emergency department and tell them all of the details and the places you’ve been.”

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