Charleston has 2 West Nile virus cases as mosquito-borne disease spreads (2024)

Charleston has two confirmed cases of West Nile virus in patients hospitalized at Roper St. Francis Healthcare, the hospital epidemiologist confirmed.

Both patients suffered the more serious and rare neurologic disease from the infection and are now slowly recovering.

Dr. Kent Stock of Roper said both patients were hospitalized around the same time, although it was unclear when they were first admitted what the cause of their illness was.

"Sometimes it's sort of a very classic presentation (of symptoms), and then other times, because of the patient's history, there can be other concerns that need to be worked through, besides potential infection," he said.

At least one of the patients, a 68-year-old man from James Island, developed atrial fibrillation in the emergency room and was initially admitted to the cardiac floor, according to a family member.

Those initial symptoms might have been the body's response to staving off the infection, said Michael Schmidt, a professor of microbiology at Medical University of South Carolina.

"They were fighting the good fight in the beginning and then their systems just couldn't combat the virus," he said.

Most people — around eight in 10 —who are infected with West Nile don't develop symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. One in five might get a fever or body aches. In one out of every 150 cases or so, the infection invades the central nervous system and can attack the brain, the CDC noted. About 10 percent of those patients die.

In this case, both patients are now in a long recovery mode that will include rehabilitation, one of whom was getting inpatient care at Roper this week, Stock said.

The Charleston patients are among eight confirmed human West Nile cases in South Carolina, according to the Department of Public Health. The agency does not break down those cases by county because it says it wants to reduce the chance a patient might be identified. But Charleston County was informed of a couple of cases on Aug. 29, said spokeswoman Chloe Field.

The county will pursue the state-provided guidelines for mitigation, she said:

• The affected area is scheduled for spraying and the advice is to include a one-mile radius around it

• Standing water in the area is also treated

• Traps to collect mosquitoes are set and they may be tested for disease

• Monitoring and spray continue as needed.

West Nile has been in the U.S. since 1999 and initially created great concern but that has died down over time, Stock said. DPH still monitors for it and notifies counties if a dead infected bird is found there, which can put clinicians on alert.

"But it seems that this year, there is a resurgence in humans, particularly in South Carolina, where we've seen a higher number of cases than we have in recent years," Stock said.

Part of it may be dueto a resurgence in animals that the virus seems to have an affinity for, such as birds, Schmidt said. Birds were decimated when the virus first appeared but now those stocks have seen a rebound and they can be a host for the virus. But the wet weather is also helping mosquitoes thrive as well, Schmidt said.

Viruses also benefit from the fact that mosquitoes are a great way to spread disease, he said.

"Mother Nature has selected them as their syringe of choice," Schmidt said.

Climate change, and with it milder winters, are also making it easier for another mosquito-borne disease, malaria, to creep its way back into the Lowcountry, he said. Prior to the Civil War, malaria was actually common in the Charleston area, Schmidt said, and may one day be again.

If that happens, clinicians won't have to guess about what they are dealing with, said Dr. Helmut Albrecht, medical director of the Center of Infectious Diseases Research and Policy for Prisma Health and the University of South Carolina.

"Malaria is not subtle," he said, and it is already found in pockets in the United States in south Texas and south Florida. The state sees cases now but in patients who have traveled to areas where it is already widespread.

The best strategy is prevention, limiting time outdoors around dusk and wearing long sleeves and light-colored clothing, Schmidt said. Use insect repellent, including those that contain DEET, picaridin or oil of eucalyptus, DPH advised.

Vigilance for mosquito-borne viruses like West Nile is also key, Stock said.

Doctors "should be a little more aware this year that this could be showing up in patients and people," he said.