By Valerie Gomez
On Aug. 8, West Nile Virus was found to be present in four Newton pools located in Oak Hill and Newton Center. Massachusetts public health officials have raised the risk level for the West Nile Virus from low to moderate in Newton, Cambridge, and Waltham according to Newton Patch and Wicked Local.
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health announced on Aug. 26 the first case of West Nile Virus in the state this year.
According to the CDC, West Nile Virus is a mosquito-borne viral illness of varying seriousness. Approximately 80 percent of people who contract the virus do not show any symptoms and only one in 150 infected develop a severe illness that can manifest into brain damage or even death. Many people have unknowingly had a West Nile Virus infection because it presented itself as a headache, sore throat, or stiff joints.
The number of accounts of the virus has been on the rise in Massachusetts over the years.
In 2012, there were 33 confirmed cases of West Nile Virus in Massachusetts alone as stated by WCVB.
Some students expressed a growing concern as it is currently the peak season for the West Nile Virus.
“I normally don’t think about getting a virus but once you hear about people getting [the virus] on the radio you really think about how a simple mosquito bite can change your life,” sophomore Nicole Ginzburg said.
Other students said they are not too concerned about contracting the virus despite the prevalence of virus-carrying mosquitoes.
“I [understand] that people get this virus in Newton but its not something I think about every time I go outside,” junior Sebastian Lucena said. “The chance of me getting West Nile is so small so the chance of me getting seriously sick from it is even smaller”.
Some students said they admit that they are aware of the risks of contracting West Nile Virus but have not bothered to take precautionary action.
“Almost every time I leave the house in the afternoon my mom is nagging me to put bug spray on,” junior Emily Oxenaar said. “Then she tells me a bunch of facts about mosquitoes and all those diseases they carry. It’s annoying but she has a point.”
Heather Davidson, pediatrician at Newton-Wellesley Family Pediatrics, says that West Nile Virus has impacted more people than many believe.
“Findings suggest that WNV has a greater impact on public health than realized, with milder forms of the illness going unreported,” Davidson said. “A person who is bitten by an infected mosquito may show symptoms from 3 to 15 days after the bite. There is no specific treatment for West Nile virus, and no vaccine is available for humans.”
Despite the growing number of cases of West Nile in the area, many have been able to evade the virus by wearing mosquito repellent or being aware of stagnant water in pools or ponds.
