Lots of rain = lots of mosquitoes.
Local health authorities worry the post-Beryl explosion of the blood-sucking insects could become more than a nuisance, raising the risk of infections of West Nile and other mosquito-borne illnesses.
At least 496 mosquito samples have tested positive for the West Nile virus across the county so far this year, according to Harris County Public Health figures. The department recorded 50 positive samples last year, and less than 400 in 2021 and 2022 combined.
As of Wednesday, seven human cases of West Nile have been confirmed since Beryl, said Dr. Max Vigilant, director of Harris County Public Health’s Mosquito and Vector Control. None had been recorded before the storm, he said.
West Nile virus is the leading cause of mosquito-borne disease in the United States, according to the Texas Department of Health and Human Services. Roughly one in five infected people will develop mild flu-like symptoms. Perhaps one in 150 people will suffer a more severe case of West Nile, develop other illnesses, such as encephalitis, or suffer permanent brain damage.
“We too often forget that this part of the country has a particular vulnerability to mosquito-transmitted virus infections,” said Dr. Peter Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and co-director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development. “With (Harris County Mosquito and Vector Control) getting lots of positive samples for West Nile, plus several positive human cases after Beryl in Harris County, you put all of that together, it could be a real problem.”
Mosquito populations typically boom after major rain events such as Beryl. That does not always mean mosquito-borne diseases increase in humans, however.
“West Nile virus is unpredictable,” Vigilant said. “Normally, what you see after a storm is that the number of diseased mosquitoes are less, because you get blow-out and you get wash-out. So, those mosquitoes that survive have to lay again, then hatch again.”
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County data from this summer suggests the West Nile virus is spreading fast within the county’s mosquito population, at least.
The county’s first positive West Nile mosquito sample emerged in May; only 11 more samples tested positive that month. In June, however, 330 samples – around 25 percent of the total tested – came back positive.
So far this month, 174 samples had tested positive as of Wednesday, including 40 since Beryl hit the Houston area 16 days ago.
Positive samples have been collected in at least 165 of the county’s 260 operational areas, Vigilant said.
The usual precautions and remediations apply. Dump out any buckets or birdbaths or what have you around your yard that have standing water in them. Use DEET and wear sufficient clothing to protect against skeeter bites, especially at night. The county will do what it can to try to keep the bugs under control, but there’s only so much they can do.
Speaking from experience, you do not want to get West Nile encephalitis. I spent a week in the hospital, 3 months recovering from the joint pain, 18 months with legs that didn’t want to work right, and still have dizziness. I was most likely bitten in my back yard in the Greater heights area. There is no cure, you just have to stay alive until your body gets over the infection. The good news is that you can only get West Nile once, as you become immune.
West Nile is in the same family as dengue, yellow fever, zika, and chikungunya.
Use your repellent, folks, and eliminate mosquito breeding areas.