Palatine Man Tests Positive For West Nile
PALATINE, Ill. (CBS) -- An elderly northwest suburban man is the first to be diagnosed this year in the Chicago area with West Nile-related diseases.
Cook County Public Health officials said the man is in his 80s, is from Palatine, and was hospitalized earlier this month. He remains hospitalized but is said to be recovering.
The man fits the profile of those most likely to develop severe symptoms: those over 50 years of age, and those with compromised immune systems.
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Illinois Dept. of Public Health spokesperson Melanie Arnold said this is the 11th year the Chicago area has had to contend with West Nile, and although deaths and confirmed cases are way down from the first couple of years, she said West Nile-infected mosquitoes should not be taken for granted.
"Wear insect repellant when you go outside," she said. As far as your house, get ride of any standing water around your house."
That, she said, is where the mosquitoes breed.
Symptoms include persistent fever, headache and body aches that do not diminish over several days.
A second case of West Nile transmission was reported by the Franklin-Williamson Bi-County Health Department, involving a man in his 30s.
In addition to Cook County, infected mosquitoes have been found Kane, DuPage, Will and Kendall Counties, along with Champaign, Franklin, Gallatin, Jackson, LaSalle, Macon, St. Clair and Tazewell Counties downstate.
