August 17, 2012
NEW HAVEN RESIDENT SICK WITH WEST NILE
Dillon again urges precautions when outdoors at peakhours
Rep. Pat Dillon asked residents to take precautions – like wearing long sleeves and long pants and removing standing water from their property – after a New Haven resident was hospitalized with West Nilevirus.
“Our community understands the seriousness of West Nile virus,” Rep.Dillon said. “In 2006 one of our neighbors in the West River neighborhood died from West Nile.”
According to the state Department of Public Health, a New Haven resident between 30-39 years of age, showed symptoms of the illness during the first week of August and was hospitalized the following week with meningitis related to West Nile infection. Symptoms included headache, stiff neck, nausea, and muscle weakness. The person has been discharged from the hospital and is recovering.
The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, based in New Haven, recommends a series of precautions to minimize exposure to mosquitoes:
West Nile infected mosquitoes have been repeatedly trapped in New Haven and surrounding communities from July 12 through August 8.