WEST Nile virus has claimed its fourth victim of the summer in Andalucia after an 84-year-old man infected with the disease died in hospital in Sevilla, the regional health authority has confirmed.
The patient, from La Puebla del Rio in Sevilla, was admitted to the Virgen del Rocio University Hospital with neuroinvasive symptoms.
According to reports, he suffered from a pre-existing health condition.
The victim, who is yet to be named, is the fourth to hit the region this summer, following the deaths of an 82-year-old from Dos Hermanas, an 89-year-old from Guadalema de los Quintero and an 81-year-old from Tomares.
All four fatalities so far this year have been elderly patients with underlying health conditions.
So far, 71 human cases of West Nile fever have been identified in Andalucia this summer.
Of these, 40 have presented mild illness and 31 have developed neuroinvasive symptoms, which affect the brain and nervous system.
A total of 35 patients have been hospitalised, three of whom remain under medical supervision.
Currently, 21 municipalities remain on alert for the virus – covering parts of Cadiz, Cordoba, Huelva, Malaga and Sevilla – requiring increasing monitoring of mosquito and animal and human cases.
The majority of cases recorded so far have been located in Sevilla province.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), West Nile virus is a mosquito-borne disease commonly found across Africa, Europe, the Middle East, North America and western Asia.
The virus is primarily spread through the bites of mosquitos, which become carriers after feeding on infected birds.
The good news is that around 80 per cent of people infected never develop any symptoms.
Of the remaining cases, most experience a mild flu-like illness called West Nile fever, with symptoms including fever, headaches, body aches, fatigue, nausea and, in some cases, a skin rash or swollen glands.
Only a small proportion of infections become serious.
The WHO estimates that around one in every 150 infected people develop severe neurological complications such as meningitis or encephalitis, which can cause confusion, muscle weakness, seizures, paralysis or, in rare cases, death.
Older adults and people with weakened immune systems are at the highest risk of developing severe illness.
Symptoms typically appear between three and 14 days after being bitten by an infected mosquito.
There is currently no vaccine available for humans.
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