| TORONTO
(Reuters) - The deadly mosquito-borne West Nile virus, responsible
for killing about 10 people in North America in the past
year, may have found its way to Canada, an infectious disease
expert said on Monday.
Dr.
Andrew Simor, head of the Department of Microbiology at
the Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Center
in Toronto, said the virus was found recently in dead
birds in upstate New York near the Canadian border, leading
health officials to believe it had likely made its way
to Canada.
The
virus, first discovered in North America last summer in
New York City, is passed by mosquitoes from birds to humans.
``It
certainly raises the possibility that at least birds across
the border may have become infected,'' Simor said. ''Birds
fly across the border without recognizing national boundaries.''
Although
considered rare, the concern prompted Canadian health
officials last week to issue notices to health units to
gather dead birds for tests.
The
virus, which killed seven people in the New York metropolitan
area last summer, is spread to humans by the bite of an
infected mosquito, and can cause encephalitis or meningitis.
It is not transmitted from human to human, or from birds
to humans.
Most
infected people do not experience symptoms, but in elderly
or other vulnerable individuals such as those with weak
immune symptoms, West Nile can be potentially fatal. The
symptoms include fever, headaches, change in consciousness
and seizures.
There
has been only one reported death in Canada. Last year
a 75-year-old Toronto man died after apparently contracting
the virus during a visit to New York City.
``I
think overall the risk is very, very low. In the past
two years there has only been a dozen confirmed cases
in New York and Boston,'' Simor said. ``To my knowledge
there has been no known case (contracted) in Canada.
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