Suffolk health commissioner: Fourth West Nile virus case in county

The Suffolk health commissioner said Thursday there has been a fourth West Nile virus case in the county.

The individual is over the age of 50 and is from the Town of Huntington, said Dr. Gregson Pigott in a news release. The individual was not hospitalized and has since recovered.

According to the release, health officials have reported three additional cases of West Nile virus, one in an individual, also over the age of 50 and from the Town of Huntington, and two others under the age of 50, one from the Town of Brookhaven another from the Town of Babylon.

"There is no discernible trend," Pigott said in the release. "We know only about the cases in which the patient sought treatment and we received laboratory confirmation of West Nile virus. There may be many more residents who acquired West Nile virus, but we never learned about them because they didn’t seek medical attention or they sought attention but lab tests weren’t ordered."

West Nile virus is transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected mosquito. Individuals who are most at risk for severe infection include those over 50 years of age or those with chronic illness or compromised immune systems. West Nile virus can be fatal, the release said.

Mosquito season is from June 1 through Nov. 1.

Suffolk County reported five human cases of the virus in 2020, three in 2019, and 11 in 2018.

It is estimated that 20% of those who become infected will develop clinically noticeable symptoms of West Nile virus, the release said.

Mild symptoms may include fever, headache and body aches, skin rash and swollen lymph glands. More severe symptoms include high fever, headache, neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, vision loss, numbness and paralysis.

By Deborah S. Morris

deborah.morris@newsday.comdsvmorris

Deborah Morris is a native Long Islander and covers the town of Huntington.