The first autochthonous case of West Nile in Italy was recorded on Wednesday in the Modena area. It is a 77-year-old person, resident in Medolla, currently hospitalized in Neurology at the Ramazzini hospital in Carpi.
West Nile virus is endemic, or rather present in a stable manner, in our region and in those of the Po Valley. Its multiplication cycle develops between some species of birds and our common mosquitoes (Culex spp.). Humans, as well as horses, are occasionally infected through mosquito bites and are not able to transmit the infection to other mosquitoes or to other people. Unlike the protocols in place for cases of Dengue and other viruses transmitted by mosquitoes, in this case disinfestations are not foreseen in the patient’s area of residence as the virus is not transmissible.
Contact with the virus usually causes an infection that occurs without symptoms, but in some cases it can develop the disease called West Nile Disease, with obvious symptoms that can resemble a flu syndrome and that last a few days. However, albeit rarely and especially in debilitated people, it can lead to serious neurological forms that require hospitalization and that can lead to permanent outcomes or death of the affected patients.
The finding of positivity to the West Nile virus entails the activation of interventions to control the common mosquito and prevention in humans and horses. Therefore, in the Municipalities of the provinces where the presence of the virus has been found, these measures are activated and reinforced, as foreseen by the Regional Plan for the surveillance and control of arbovirosis 2024, starting with the rigorous implementation of the anti-larval control interventions under the responsibility of the Municipalities and the intensification of control activities and support for the activities carried out by private individuals.
“It is recommended that the population – explains the ASL – and in particular in the provinces affected by viral circulation, protect themselves from bites, especially in the evening and at night when the common mosquito is active, by applying skin repellents and taking appropriate precautions at home using mosquito coils, electric diffusers, mosquito nets. Finally, mosquitoes only need a little stagnant water to lay their eggs and reproduce and it is therefore necessary to eliminate all possible stagnant water and periodically use larvicidal products”.
There is also the “ZanzaRER” App available which provides advice and useful information for fighting mosquitoes and gives the possibility of recording interventions with larvicides carried out with an automatic update of the repetition calendar.l
