West Nile virus raises public health concerns

Once a Southeast Missouri State University epidemiologist discovered West Nile virus in local mosquitos earlier this summer, and as veterinarians reported the disease in horses, all we could do is sit back and wait for the first human cases to pop up.

Or was that all that could be done?

We know the city stepped up the level of mosquito spraying, but other than that, the public didn't hear much from agencies charged with public health and safety about the matter. (The Cape Girardeau County Public Health Center released information that dove hunting is OK, but don't eat the dove brains lest you catch West Nile from an infected bird.)

The first reported human case of West Nile virus in Cape Girardeau County was reported last week, but not by any public agency. The Southeast Missourian received a tip about the infected man. We'd learned about the horses the same way a couple of weeks earlier.

The story Walter Gawrych of Cape Girardeau had to tell was compelling. He wasn't thrilled about recounting the horror of his illness, but his doing so undoubtedly helped many others take the disease seriously.

Gawrych had flu-like symptoms and headaches so severe it felt like his "head was being squeezed in a vise." He went to a hospital emergency room three times and was treated for dehydration. He was tested for spinal meningitis, but that wasn't it.

The days of agony and not knowing the cause must have been almost unbearable for Gawrych.

Since his story was told, other people with similar symptoms have been asking their doctors if West Nile virus might be the cause. While several tests have been sent off for verification, no other human cases have been reported to date.

There is nothing that can be done to stop the West Nile virus once it is contracted. Doctors can only treat the symptoms and try to make sufferers more comfortable.

To date, the public has been told: "Don't panic. Most people who are bitten by a mosquito carrying the virus won't even realize they have it. Only the very elderly and very young really need to worry."

But the Centers for Disease Control were reporting 1,295 cases and 54 deaths in the United States as of late this week. And Gawrych is 29 years old.

Yes, those numbers are insignificant compared with the thousands who suffer other potentially fatal illnesses. So should life as we know it stop as we go into full battle with our bloodsucking insect enemies? Is it appropriate and healthy to live in fear of contracting the virus?

Certainly not. The CDC recommends using mosquito repellent with the chemical DEET, wearing long pants and long-sleeved shirts when outside at peak hours for mosquitos -- dawn and dusk -- and repairing screens so the insects can't get inside. And the best prevention is removing standing water, which is a mosquito breeding ground.

There's a difference between informing and protecting the public and creating a panic. But if the first two aren't done, surely the third will follow.