West Nile virus found in Southeast Missouri

A dead blue jay found in southeast Missouri was infected with the West Nile virus -- the first confirmed case of the disease in Missouri this year, the state health department said Wednesday.

The discovery of the dead blue jay in Stoddard County also marked the first time the disease has been confirmed outside the St. Louis area and in a bird other than a crow.

To date, there have been no confirmed cases of people contracting the mosquito-spread virus in Missouri, although people elsewhere have been infected.

"It just confirms what we have been expecting to see -- continued expansion of the range of this disease," said Howard Pue, chief of communicable disease control and veterinary public health for the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

West Nile virus is usually carried by birds, but mosquitoes can transfer the virus from birds to horses or other animals., including humans.

The virus causes flu-like symptoms and, in about 1 percent of human cases, can cause a serious illness that includes encephalitis.