Nebraska has its first confirmed human case this year of West Nile Virus, a person in the Three Rivers Public Health District west of Omaha who did NOT require hospitalization.
West Nile virus is the most preventable mosquito-borne disease in the U-S and is spread from a mosquito that acquired the virus by feeding on an infected bird and passed it by biting a human.
The best thing the public can do to protect themselves from West Nile Virus is to avoid mosquitoes and getting bitten.
Most people who are infected have no or only mild flu-like symptoms. Less than 1% of people infected with West Nile Virus become severely ill, but people over 50 and those with weakened immune systems are especially vulnerable.