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By
Mark Lavie
The Associated Press
J E R U S A L E M — An 84-year-old man died this
week of complications from the West Nile virus —
the same virus that hit the New York City area this summer
— health officials said Tuesday.
Despite newspaper headlines and long reports on the radio,
officials tried to calm fears. Experts noted that the
virus is common in this region, and most Israelis have
developed immunity.
In New York City, five people have been diagnosed with
West Nile virus this year, all 63 years old or older,
officials say. The virus killed seven people and sickened
more than 60 in the New York City area last year.
Severe
infections of West Nile virus can result in encephalitis,
an inflammation of the brain, or meningitis, an inflammation
of the brain’s lining and the spinal cord.
Steps
Against Virus Spread
While
downplaying the severity in Israel, officials are taking
steps to stop the spread. The Health Ministry said it
is working with local authorities to increase spraying
against mosquitoes, which carry the disease to humans
after biting infected birds.
Agriculture
Ministry workers destroyed a flock of 3,000 infected geese
at a farm in the center of the country Monday, said the
director of the ministry’s veterinary services, Dr.
Oded Nir. He said farm-grown flocks are immunized, but
it is much more difficult to deal with free birds. Israel
is on a main bird migration route.
Despite
the fatality, “there is no cause for concern,”
Heath Ministry spokesman Yoram Malka told The Associated
Press.
Professor
Eitan Rubinstein, director of the infectious disease department
at Sheba Hospital outside Tel Aviv, where the man died,
said West Nile disease usually causes mild flu-like symptoms
and clears up by itself in a few days, leaving lifelong
immunity.
The
Health Ministry said two residents of Tel Aviv were diagnosed
with serious complications from the virus last year. Rubinstein
said that “more than one died, for certain.”
Older immigrants to Israel are more vulnerable. The elderly
and infirm are at risk of developing complications, like
encephalitis and meningitis, said Dr. Alex Levental, director
of public health services at the Health Ministry.
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