West Nile Case Brings Kane County Total to 12

The Kane County Health Department updates cases of West Nile Virus.

The Kane County Health Department is reporting one case of West Nile Virus, bringing the total this season to 12, the most since 2007. The case being reported Wednesday is a 64-year-old man from Aurora, who was hospitalized and has since been discharged. The Health Department stopped West Nile monitoring activities last month with the onset of the cold weather, but will continue to report any new cases once a week on Wednesdays. The Illinois Public Health Department has recorded 245 cases statewide this year, including 10 deaths, as compared to 34 cases and three deaths last year. West Nile virus is transmitted through the bite of a mosquito that has picked up the virus by feeding on an infected bird. Most people with the virus have no …

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McHenry County Reports More Human WNV Cases

Four more residents stricken by West Nile Virus, county health department said.

The McHenry County Health Department reported four more human cases of West Nile virus, the most number of cases since 2007, officials said Monday. Individuals affected range in age from 61-70 from the communities of Lake in the Hills, Woodstock and Cary, according to a release from the McHenry County Health Department (MCHD). Three of the residents were hospitalized, with two having the more serious illnesses of encephalitis and meningitis, but all have since returned home. Earlier this year, MCDH reported a 56- year-old from Cary contracted WNV but the person was not hospitalized and has since recovered.  A single case of human WNV was reported in each of the last two years in McHenry County during the months of August, September and …

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West Nile Case Brings Kane County Total to 10

One of the cases, the 64-year-old man from Elgin, died in August.

West Nile Case Brings Kane County Total to 10

One of the cases, the 64-year-old man from Elgin, died in August.

The Kane County Health Department is reporting today one case of West Nile Virus, bringing the total this season to 10. The case being reported today (Oct. 10, 2012) is an 85-year-old Elgin man, who was hospitalized and has since been discharged. The Health Department will be reporting new cases once a week on Wednesdays until the end of the West Nile season, which ends with the first hard frost. Other cases this year include: One of the cases, the 64-year-old man from Elgin, died in August. This summer was hot and dry, the perfect combination for the Culex mosquito, the species that is known to carry the virus. It is likely we will continue to see activity until the season is over. The Health Department monitors for WNV activity in your …

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New West Nile Cases Bring Kane County Total to 9

Kane County Health Department reports four new cases.

  The Kane County Health Department reported four more cases of West Nile Virus Wednesday, bringing the total so far this season to nine. The new cases being reported are:  a 67-year-old man and 61-year-old man, both from Elgin; a 50-year-old St. Charles man and a 59-year-old Geneva man, according to a release. Other cases this year include a 71-year-old man from Aurora, a 61-year-old Geneva woman, a 70-year-old Aurora man, 16-year-old Batavia girl and a 64-year-old Elgin man, who died in August. This summer was hot and dry, the perfect combination for the Culex mosquito, the species that is known to carry the virus. It is likely we will continue to see activity until the season is over when the first frost occurs, the release stated. The …

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Communities Up Mosquito Treatments to Combat West Nile Virus

The McHenry County Health Department confirmed the first human case of West Nile Virus in the county this week.

Area communities are upping their mosquito spray applications with the hopes of combating West Nile Virus in the area.  The Lake in the Hills Village Board last week approved an additional spray treatment for the month of September. The treatment will be done in conjunction with the village of Huntley and the city of Crystal Lake.  Clarke — the provider for the village's mosquito spray applications — encouraged the additional application in a Aug. 31 letter to the village, noting that the area remained at a moderate to high risk for a West Nile Virus outbreak.  Clarke has conducted all four contracted mosquito treatments and the recent board approval will allow for a fifth application in September. The cost is $4,500.  Also this week, the …

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West Nile Virus Death Reported in Kane

In Kane County, four total deaths have been reported because of West Nile Virus since 2002.

A 64-year-old Elgin man with West Nile Virus died last week, marking the first human death because of the virus in Kane County this year, according to a Kane County Health Department press release.  In total, West Nile Virus is listed as the cause for four deaths in Kane County since 2002, according to the news release.  "This summer has been hot and dry, the perfect combination for the Culex mosquito, the species that is known to carry the virus," according to the news release. "It is likely we will see more activity before the season is over." So far this year,1,118 cases of West Nile Virus have been reported to the CDC in United States. In Illinois, 21 WNV cases were reported as of Aug. 21.  “The 1,118 cases reported thus far in 2012 is…

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Cases of West Nile Virus in Chicago's Northern Suburbs

The CDC announced that this is the worst year for West Nile Virus since it started tracking in 1999. Check out how your area is faring in our interactive map of diagnosed cases in humans and mosquitoes.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced this week that reported cases of West Nile Virus are at an all time high. “The 1118 cases reported thus far in 2012 is the highest number of West Nile virus disease cases reported to CDC through the third week in August since West Nile virus was first detected in the United States in 1999,” the CDC reported. While Illinois does not rank among the top five states in terms of cases, there have been 21 reported human cases of West Nile Virus in Illinois as of Aug. 21. Those cases have been clustered in the Chicago area, with 13 human cases in Cook County and one in Lake County. In the map above, Patch charted both cases of West Nile Virus confirmed in both humans and mosquitoes, …

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UPDATE: More Kane County Mosquitoes Test Positive for West Nile

The total is up to five positive batches of West Nile Virus collected in Kane County traps this year. Here's the latest.

Three more batches (or pools) of mosquitoes collected this week have tested positive for West Nile Virus, the Kane County Health Department reported Friday, July 13. The mosquito batches were collected in Kane County Health Department traps in Aurora, Montgomery and Carpentersville. This brings the total to five positive batches this year, the second in from Carpentersville. These positive mosquito batches usually are the first indicators of West Nile activity. "With this year’s hot, dry weather, these results come as no surprise," the Kane County Health Department press release said. "We usually see our first evidence of West Nile beginning in July or August. And although it has been extraordinarily dry, the few intermittent showers we’ve…

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McHenry County Reports First Positive Test for West Nile Virus

Mosquito batch in Fox River Grove tests positive, McHenry County Department of Health says.

  Update: Two mosquito batches, in Elgin and Carpentersville, tested positive for West Nile Virus, the Kane County Health Department said. Kane County reported one human case last year. A mosquito trap in Fox River Grove tested positive for West Nile virus, the McHenry County Department of Health reports. It’s the first positive test for West Nile Virus (WNV) in McHenry County this year. The McHenry County Department of Health (MCDH) tested 122 mosquito batches as of July 11 and all the other batched tested negative. No human cases of WNV have been reported in McHenry County. Last year, there was one human case in the county. Statewide, 19 counties have reported 64 positive mosquito batches and 17 positive birds but no human cases so far, …

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