HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. (AP) - State health officials say West Nile Virus has been found in a person in South Carolina for the first time this year.
The Department of Health and Environmental Control said it found a few groups of mosquitoes on Hilton Head tested with the virus last month. The agency now says it’s been detected in a person on the resort island. The person’s name was not released.
State epidemiologist Dr. Linda Bell said those who develop a fever or other symptoms after being bitten by a mosquito should be checked by a doctor. Bell said most people infected with the virus have no symptoms.
She said the risk of serious illness such as encephalitis occurs in less than 1 person of people infected. Encephalitis is an inflation of the brain.
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