The Logan County Department Of Public Health urges you to “fight the bite”

[May 31, 2023] 

With the arrival of warm weather, mosquitoes are becoming active thus increasing the threat of mosquito-related diseases such as West Nile Virus (WNV). West Nile encephalitis is an infection of the brain caused by WNV which is transmitted by the bite of mosquitoes. During warm weather months, the Logan County Department of Public Health (LCDPH) urges the public to take precautions to eliminate breeding areas around homes and to avoid mosquito bites.

Precautions to prevent mosquitoes include:

• Avoid being outdoors when mosquitoes are most active, especially between dusk and dawn. Use prevention methods whenever mosquitoes are present.

• When outdoors, wear shoes and socks, long pants, and a long-sleeved shirt, and apply insect repellent that includes DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus according to label instructions. Contact a physician before using repellents on infants.

• Make sure doors and windows have tight-fitting screens. Repair or replace screens that might have tears or other openings. Try to keep doors and windows shut, especially at night.

• Eliminate all sources of standing water that can support mosquito breeding, including water in bird baths, ponds, flowerpots, wading pools, old tires, and other receptacles. Contact your local municipal government or the Logan County Department of Public Health to report areas of stagnant water in roadside ditches, flooded yards and similar locations that may produce mosquitoes.

If you are bitten by a mosquito, there is no reason to be tested for WNV since illnesses related to mosquito bites are rare. However, if you develop symptoms such as high fever, confusion, muscle weakness or severe headache, you should see your doctor.

LCDPH, through a grant from the Illinois Department of Public Health, began monitoring mosquito activity on May 15th and will continue through October 15th. Monitoring includes the collection and submittal of dead birds to the Illinois State Laboratory for WNV testing. As part of the monitoring process, LCDPH would appreciate the public’s help. If you observe a bird that has been dead less then 24 hours and appears to have died of natural causes, please contact the health dept to see if it qualifies for testing.

In addition to collecting birds, the health department will be trapping and testing pools of mosquitos to identify WNV activity during much of the summer. If you observe these traps in residential and rural areas, please do not touch the traps as it could affect accurate testing. If you have questions regarding prevention of mosquito-related diseases, eliminating breeding sites, or would like more general information, you can contact the Logan County Department of Public Health at 217-735-2317 or you can visit their website at WWW.LCDPH.ORG.

Information Source: Illinois Department of Public Health

[Don Cavi, MS, LEHP
Public Health Administrator
Logan County Department of Public Health]