A woman in her sixties died of West Nile Virus, making it the first West-Nile Related Death in North Dakota for 2013.
Michelle Feist is West Nile Program Manager for the North Dakota Department of Health.
Feist said the woman who died lived in the southeastern region of the state. The the woman did not have any other underlying medical diseases.
“Unfortunately this individual did have the more severe form of West Nile Virus Disease,” Feist said. “Individuals who get this severe disease is typically are hospitalized; but do experience symptoms such as confusion, disorientation, sometimes even paralysis,” Feist said.
There are 16 reported cases of West Nile in the state right now, said Feist.
“This is our peak transmission season right now. We’re expecting to see some more cases in the next few weeks,” Feist said.
Feist said people should protect against mosquito bites by wearing protective clothing and bug repellant.
