- MIAMI (Reuters) - A 74-year-old
Florida man died of West Nile virus the state's first fatality from the
outbreak that has already peaked in regions where cold weather killed mosquitoes
that carry the virus, health officials said on Friday.
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- The man died on Sunday at a hospital in north central
Florida's Marion County from complications of encephalitis caused by West
Nile virus, state Department of Health spokesman Rob Hayes said.
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- The man, whose name was not released, was the 27th person
in Florida confirmed to have the disease and the first to die from it.
Most people who acquire the virus have no symptoms or only flu-like symptoms
but it can cause a potentially fatal inflammation of the brain.
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- Nationwide there have been 3,829 confirmed cases of West
Nile this year and 225 deaths from it, the largest outbreak since the disease
first surfaced in the United States three years ago, the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention said.
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- The CDC said early last month that the U.S. epidemic
had peaked, with new cases declining as cold winter weather slowed or killed
mosquitoes that carry the virus.
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- But in Florida, where winter temperatures in the southern
part of the state often reach the 80s, the rate of new cases has been stable.
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- "You have to assume in Florida that you need to
protect yourself from West Nile virus 12 months out of the year,"
Hayes said. "Even in the northernmost parts of Florida, it's not cold
enough for an extended period of time."
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- Thirty-nine of Florida's 67 counties remained under a
health alert for West Nile and residents were urged to guard against mosquito
bites.
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