Advertisement

Region's first West Nile cases reported for 2011

The Windsor-Essex County medical officer of health has announced the region's first two probable human cases of the West Nile virus.

An Essex man who donated blood tested positive for West Nile. His blood was destroyed by Canadian Blood Services, Dr. Allen Heimann, said.

Another man was admitted to Windsor Regional Hospital with symptoms and positive blood work.

The Essex man has no symptoms or complications so far, and the hospitalized man is in stable condition. Both men are in their fifties and both cases are awaiting laboratory confirmation, he said.

Three mosquito pools have tested positive for the virus — two in the city of Windsor and one in LaSalle, Ont.

"It's important that local residents take personal protective measures to avoid mosquito bites and prevent infection," Heimann said in a release.

Heimann said there are several ways to keep the pesky bugs at bay: