TWIN FALLS, Idaho — West Nile virus has been detected in southern Idaho mosquitoes, and health officials say it has appeared nearly every summer since 2006. Experts from Twin Falls County Pest Abatement District and South Central Public Health District are urging residents to take precautions to reduce their risk.
Tanner Henke, operations supervisor for Twin Falls County Pest Abatement District, says the region's climate creates prime conditions for the virus to thrive. He and his crew spend the summer checking more than 650 sites across the county for disease-bearing mosquitoes.
Jacob Ward, an epidemiologist with South Central Public Health District, says anyone who can be bitten by a mosquito is at risk.
"Basically, if you're at risk for a mosquito bite, you're at risk for virus infection," Ward said.
Over the past 5 years in the Magic Valley region, there have been 15 confirmed or suspected West Nile virus infections in humans. Ward says that number is likely under-reported, because most people who get infected may not realize it.
"Obviously, just with other illnesses, the more immunocompromised you are, the more at risk you are for more severe infection," Ward said.
Common symptoms include fever, fatigue, and joint stiffness. Ward says most people with typical symptoms recover within a few days to about a week.
"Some of the common symptoms would be like fever and like bad fatigue maybe even some stiffness or joint stiffness, and then usually in case of normal symptoms, would recover within a few days of the symptoms start, with maybe a week of feeling lousy," Ward said.
Both Ward and Henke say the best defense against mosquitoes is eliminating their habitat. That means regularly checking your yard and dumping any standing water that has collected in buckets, containers, or low spots.
"Some common ways to prevent mosquito bites are to eliminate their habitat by going around your yard, dumping buckets that maybe filled with water from your sprinklers every couple days," Ward said.
Henke says even small amounts of standing water can become a breeding ground.
"Like a glass of water you left on the back porch last week. You never brought it in. Or that boat cover that has that sag in the middle and fills with water, that can produce thousands of mosquitoes throughout the season," Henke said.
When spending time outside near dawn or dusk, or in cooler, shaded areas with available moisture, experts recommend wearing long sleeves and using an EPA-registered insect repellent.
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