Arkansas preliminary tests positive for West Nile virus

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Posted 8:34AM on Sunday, August 11, 2002

LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS - Blood samples from two people tested positive for the West Nile virus in preliminary screenings in Arkansas, but will require more tests to confirm that the two do indeed have the illness, Dr. Fay Boozman, the state Health Department director, said Saturday. Boozman said the next step is to send the two samples to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, which will make the final determination. The results could be available in 10-14 days, he said. Although both samples were from Arkansas County, one of the two people is from Houston, Texas, and became ill while visiting Arkansas, Boozman said. An Arkansas County doctor sent a blood sample from that person to the Health Department for testing. Boozman said the state was still in the process of collecting information on the two people, but his understanding was that both of them were doing fine and that the Texan has returned home. Neither of them is in a hospital, he said. Health officials don't know yet if the Texas person could have contracted the virus in Texas or Arkansas. Boozman would not release further details about the two, including their gender, ages, or health conditions. A Union County man that had tested positive in state screenings for the virus turned out not to have the illness after further tests by the CDC, the state learned last week. State health officials may get the results from their own tests on seven other people this week, Boozman said. ``Clearly, the virus is very active in our state right now,'' he said. The virus spreads to humans from mosquitoes. An infected person may develop flu-like symptoms but nothing more serious. Others can die, although the likelihood is very small, Boozman stressed. He said only 1 percent of people infected with the virus develop severe symptoms and of that 1 percent, only 3 percent to 15 percent die. The most vulnerable are the elderly and the sick, whose immune systems are depressed. Arkansans should not put off enjoying the outdoors, he said, but should simply take precautions. Wear mosquito repellant and long-sleeve shirts and long pants; also remove any standing water on property where mosquitoes can breed, he said. ``I can assure you the drive to the canoeing outing or the drive to the picnic are much more dangerous'' to a person's health than being outside and risking the chance of getting deathly ill from the virus, he said. On Monday, the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management will discuss how money will be spent and in which counties on a program to eradicate the breeding grounds of mosquitoes, Boozman said. On Tuesday, two CDC workers, including an epidemiologist, will set up office at the Health Department in Little Rock to advise the state on how to deal with the virus. Since 1999, the virus has spread from the East Coast to the Southern states and is spreading west. Seven people in Louisiana have died this year from the virus. In Arkansas, two horses that tested positive for the virus in state tests have died and officials are waiting on results from federal tests to determine if the animals did indeed have the virus. Ninety-seven birds in 23 counties in Arkansas have tested positive in state tests. Last week, Gov. Mike Huckabee released $1 million for use in destroying mosquito breeding grounds. The state also has applied for federal money, and Boozman said he was told it will be available to Arkansas, although the actual amount was unknown. The Health Department has set up a hotline for people to call with questions about the virus. It also makes information available on its Web site. The Health Department hotline is 501-280-4817 during office hours and 501-661-2136 or 800-554-5738 after hours.