A severe infection can last for several weeks. In rare cases, a severe infection can cause permanent brain damage. Mild forms of West Nile virus may be confused with the flu. Symptoms include:. Infected mosquitoes usually spread the West Nile virus. The mosquito first bites an infected bird and then bites a human or another animal. In rare cases, blood transfusions, organ transplants, breastfeeding, or pregnancy can transfer the virus and spread the illness. Anyone bitten by an infected mosquito can get West Nile virus.
However, less than one percent of people who are bitten develop severe or life-threatening symptoms. Age is one of the most significant risk factors for developing severe symptoms from a West Nile infection. In most cases, your doctor can diagnose West Nile virus with a simple blood test.
This can determine whether you have genetic material or antibodies in your blood associated with West Nile virus. If your symptoms are severe and brain-related, your physician may order a lumbar puncture. Also known as a spinal tap, this test involves inserting a needle into your spine to extract fluid. West Nile virus can elevate the white blood cell count in the fluid, which indicates an infection.
MRI and other imaging scans can also help detect inflammation and brain swelling. But you can take over-the-counter pain relievers, such as ibuprofen or aspirin, to relieve symptoms of West Nile virus such as muscle aches and headaches.
If you experience brain swelling or other severe symptoms, your doctor may give you intravenous fluids and medications to lower the risk of infections. Research is currently being done on interferon therapy for West Nile virus. Interferon therapy is aimed at using substances produced by your immune system to treat encephalitis in people infected by West Nile virus. Your doctor may discuss one or more of these treatments with you if you have encephalitis and your symptoms are severe or life-threatening.
West Nile virus is most commonly spread during the summer, especially between June and September. Around 20 percent of infected people will show some fever symptoms, such as headaches, vomiting, and diarrhea.
These symptoms usually pass quickly. Some symptoms, such as fatigue, can continue for up to several months after the initial infection. Fewer than one percent of people who get West Nile virus infections develop severe symptoms or neurological conditions such as meningitis or encephalitis. Of these cases, fewer than 10 percent are fatal. I Accept Show Purposes.
Table of Contents View All. Table of Contents. Viral Detection. Antibody Testing. Routine Lab Testing. When to Test. Next in West Nile Virus Guide. Testing for West Nile infection can be expensive and the results difficult to interpret.
Milder cases of West Nile virus infection can be indistinguishable from a seasonal cold. West Nile Virus Doctor Discussion Guide Get our printable guide for your next doctor's appointment to help you ask the right questions. Download PDF. Email the Guide Send to yourself or a loved one. Sign Up. How contagious is West Nile virus? When do symptoms of West Nile virus occur? What are the long-term effects of West Nile virus?
Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! What are your concerns? Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Expert Rev Anti Infect Ther ; J Infect Dis ; Related Articles. Encephalitis vs. Muscle Weakness: Causes, Diagnosis, Treatment. What Are the Different Types of Encephalitis?
How Pilocytic Astrocytoma Is Diagnosed. What Is a Brain Infection? The Differences Between Encephalopathy and Encephalitis. Infections That Cause Headaches and a Fever.
Testing for Lyme Disease. Mollaret Meningitis. An Overview of Meningoencephalitis. How Mosquitoes Spread the Usutu Virus. Therefore, positive IgM antibodies occasionally may reflect a past infection. If serum is collected within 8 days of illness onset, the absence of detectable virus-specific IgM does not rule out the diagnosis of WNV infection, and the test may need to be repeated on a later sample.
The presence of WNV-specific IgM in blood or CSF provides good evidence of recent infection but may also result from cross-reactive antibodies after infection with other flaviviruses or from non-specific reactivity.
According to product inserts for commercially available WNV IgM assays, all positive results obtained with these assays should be confirmed by neutralizing antibody testing of acute- and convalescent-phase serum specimens at a state public health laboratory or CDC. WNV IgG antibodies generally are detected shortly after IgM antibodies and persist for many years following a symptomatic or asymptomatic infection. Therefore, the presence of IgG antibodies alone is only evidence of previous infection and clinically compatible cases with the presence of IgG, but not IgM, should be evaluated for other etiologic agents.
Plaque-reduction neutralization tests PRNTs performed in reference laboratories, including some state public health laboratories and CDC, can help determine the specific infecting flavivirus. PRNTs can also confirm acute infection by demonstrating a fourfold or greater change in WNV-specific neutralizing antibody titer between acute- and convalescent-phase serum samples collected 2 to 3 weeks apart.
Viral cultures and tests to detect viral RNA e.
0コメント