By Tom Latek
Kentucky Today
The Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness announced Friday they had been notified of a laboratory-confirmed case of West Nile virus in a Louisville resident, the first confirmed human case of 2025 in Kentucky.
“West Nile virus has been present in mosquitoes for years,” said Louisville’s Chief Health Strategist Connie Mendel. “We continue to urge everyone to protect themselves against mosquito bites. No matter where you live, please take precautions to avoid being bitten.”
Those precautions include:
• Use insect repellents when you go outdoors. Repellents containing DEET, picaridin, IR3535 and some oil of lemon eucalyptus and para-menthane-diol products provide longer-lasting protection. To optimize safety and effectiveness, repellents should be used according to the label instructions.
• When weather permits, wear long sleeves, long pants, and socks when outdoors. Mosquitoes may bite through thin clothing, so spraying clothes with repellent containing permethrin or another EPA-registered repellent will give extra protection. Don’t apply repellents containing permethrin directly to your skin. Do not spray repellent on the skin under your clothing.
• Take extra care during peak mosquito-biting hours of early morning and dusk. Be sure to use repellent and wear protective clothing from dusk to dawn or consider avoiding outdoor activities during these times.
You can also prevent mosquito breeding grounds, by doing the following:
• Emptying standing water from flowerpots, gutters, buckets, pool covers, pet water dishes, discarded tires and drain birdbaths on a regular basis.
• Install or repair screens on windows and doors to keep mosquitos outside.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in most instances, people infected with West Nile virus either show no symptoms or relatively mild symptoms. Less than one percent of infected people develop a serious neurologic illness such as encephalitis or meningitis.
Serious illness can occur in people of any age. However, people over 60 are at the greatest risk for severe disease. People with certain medical conditions, such as cancer, diabetes, hypertension, kidney disease and people who have received organ transplants are at greater risk for serious illness. Contact you healthcare provider, if you believe you have West Nile.
The CDC also notes that between 1999 and 2024, Kentucky has had 223 confirmed human cases of West Nile.