Oh Hell, Now I'm scared...

A dead bird infected with West Nile virus has been found in Crosley State Wildlife Refuge- less than 20 miles from my front doorstep.

A cold hard slap in the face, and about as subtle as a brick. Reality sucks.

Excuse my ignorance, but what exactly is West Nile virus?? :confused: :o

Originally posted by Spec2 Girl
Excuse my ignorance, but what exactly is West Nile virus?? :confused: :o

This is just a guess, for I'm no doctor! I think it's a virus west of the Nile! :rolleyes:

Actually, it's a virus that is very deadly and can start with something as simple as a headache! :eek:

West Nile Virus is a relatively new virus that is transmitted through mosquitoes which have bitten infected birds or from handling an infected bird.
In most cases, humans, horses and other animals will have very mild or no symptoms at all- but this virus at it's worst is uncurable and fatal- it can cause West Nile encephalitis (sp?) which is a fatal swelling of the brain.

Originally posted by Dustin_S
West Nile Virus is a relatively new virus that is transmitted through mosquitoes which have bitten infected birds or from handling an infected bird.
In most cases, humans, horses and other animals will have very mild or no symptoms at all- but this virus at it's worst is uncurable and fatal- it can cause West Nile encephalitis (sp?) which is a fatal swelling of the brain.

Thank you Mr. technical! I liked my first explanation better! http://www.uniquehardware.co.uk/server-smilies/contrib/dvv/anger.gif

j/p :p

Well, "the fleshing eating disease" (non technical term) can be acquired through anything! The bacteria is that of regular colds or strep throat! They just had the 7th or 8th death from it.

Isn't there a vaccine for West Nile?

nope. no cure. they can POSSIBLY sustain your life by cutting your skull open and removing your brain, giving it necessary "swelling" room...I wonder just how big it'll get, anyway?

I wouldn't worry about West Nile virus unless you are pretty old. Almost all of the deaths that have resulted from it recently have been people over the age of 70...

I was reading an article about that cat-walk that collapsed into the shark-tank at that aquarium in Florida... Nobody got attacked by sharks, but they sure freaked out when they fell in... Anyways, I think the Aquariums Director was quoted as saying "I'd rather be in a tank full of sharks than outside with the Mosquitos!" I laughed my wee bottom off.

Originally posted by ci5ic
I wouldn't worry about West Nile virus unless you are pretty old. Almost all of the deaths that have resulted from it recently have been people over the age of 70...

I was reading an article about that cat-walk that collapsed into the shark-tank at that aquarium in Florida... Nobody got attacked by sharks, but they sure freaked out when they fell in... Anyways, I think the Aquariums Director was quoted as saying "I'd rather be in a tank full of sharks than outside with the Mosquitos!" I laughed my wee bottom off. What he said. Assuming most people at this site are in their teens and 20's, very few of us have much to worry about in terms of fatality from the West Nile Virus. At our age, in general our immune systems are just too healthy to fall prey to this disease.

In general. you guys don't know my immune system. It's almost as lazy as I am. I've gotten chicken pox twice and both times put me in the hospital for dehydration. I don't even know how those two are connected. it SUCKED. LOL

we need some statistics to go on...


how does it compare with,say

Number of Americans killed this year in s.u.v. rollovers
or
Number of Americans struck by lightning this year
or
number of Americans who have won top prize in Readers' Digest sweepstakes
or
Number of Americans accidentally shot while using their own firearms...


There are plenty of more likely ways to die.:D

Originally posted by taranaki
we need some statistics to go on...


how does it compare with,say

Number of Americans killed this year in s.u.v. rollovers
or
Number of Americans struck by lightning this year
or
number of Americans who have won top prize in Readers' Digest sweepstakes
or
Number of Americans accidentally shot while using their own firearms...


There are plenty of more likely ways to die.:D


You're just a dictionary of possibilities, aren't you?:D :D :D





Back to the topic, as previously stated, only the elderly and the very young, babies, have to worry about this as their immune systems aren't developed or aren't strong enough to fight the disease. It can be treated in the early stages, but that would have to be as soon as you notice the symptoms.

Taranaki, you take all the fun out of being a hypochondriac.

DAMN YOU AND YOUR VOICE OF REASON!!!! ;)

i live in alabama right near a big lake
and we have dead birds everywhere and such
but no reported human cases yet

The county I work for has had 7 confirmed West Nile bird deaths... But the county I live in, and the county my school is in both have had only 3 confirmed W.N. bird deaths each.

I'm not terribly concerned. I had a better chance of being struck by lightning or sliding off the road tonight on my motorcycle during the thunderstorm... :o

Originally posted by saturntangerine
\

I'm not terribly concerned. I had a better chance of being struck by lightning or sliding off the road tonight on my motorcycle during the thunderstorm... :o

Exactly, the chances of it affecting you are Calista Flockhart-thin:rolleyes:

Mr. T Its not that there aren't other things that have a higher percentage that can kill you. Its that they are not mutually exclusive. Not that I am claiming we should be in a panic over thie nasty little virus, but its one thing you cant control. I can avoid driving (as an example), but I have a hard time not getting bit by mosquitoes.

Again, dont waste your time worring about it Dustin.

We've had the west nile virus in chicago for a while, dont sweat it, most people who get infected never even know, and even if you do get infected, once you get over it your imune for the next 10 years
Xv7vX

Ya know Dustin, you probably have a better chance at winning the lottery so, I'd go out there and buy some of those tickets!!! :jump: