CDC: West Nile Death Toll Climbs to 32
673 cases of Human Infection

September 4, 2002

TLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- West Nile virus has now claimed 32 lives in the nation this year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Tuesday.

The latest confirmed victim of the mosquito-borne disease was a 73-year-old man in New York. The CDC said he was hospitalized on Friday and died two days later.

The total number of confirmed or probable human West Nile cases this year rose to 673 in 27 states and the District of Columbia, the CDC said.

Until now, it was believed West Nile was transmitted solely by mosquito bites, but the CDC announced Tuesday that there is new evidence the virus could be transmitted through donated organs.

Three of four people who received organ transplants from a single donor last month have West Nile virus, and the donor also had the illness, the CDC said. One of the transplant patients has died. The others are recovering.

Most people unaware of infection

Despite the increasing number of fatalities, the CDC said most people exposed to the virus do not show any symptoms and about one in five develop only a mild, flu-like illness.

Less than 1 percent develop severe neurological disease such as encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) or meningitis (inflammation of the lining of the brain and spinal cord), both of which can be fatal. Persons over 50 are most at risk from the virus, experts say.

According to the CDC, deaths resulting from the disease have been confirmed in Georgia (2), Illinois (7), Kentucky (1), Louisiana (8), Michigan (2), Mississippi (3), Missouri (1), Nebraska (1), New York (2), Ohio (4), and Texas (1).

Louisiana has been hardest hit by this year's outbreak with 205 human infection cases. Illinois has 122 cases, followed by Mississippi with 104.

As the virus continues its westward march across the United States, there are now only nine states where neither human nor animal cases have been confirmed this year: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Alaska and Hawaii.

http://www.cnn.com/2002/HEALTH/conditions/09/03/west.nile.toll/index.html