NEWPORT — Mosquitoes collected in Newport City have tested positive for West Nile virus at the Vermont Department of Health Laboratory.
Each week, mosquitoes are collected at various locations around the state by the Vermont Agency of Agriculture.
As of August 27, the Department of Health Laboratory tested 11 mosquito pools, a group of up to 50 mosquitoes of the same species, collected in Newport City.
One of these pools tested positive for West Nile virus.
During the summer months, mosquitoes are regularly monitored at sites around the state for mosquito-borne diseases.
When the virus is transmitted to humans through mosquito bites, most people don’t get sick, but some get symptoms like fever, joint pain, vomiting, and diarrhea.
The sickness can become quite serious in some people, and those age 50 or older are at the highest risk.
Only around one out of every 150 cases develop serious symptoms which primarily affect the central nervous system.
Vermont hasn’t had any reported human cases so far this year but the virus is consistently found in the state year after year since the disease was brought to the United States from overseas in the late 1990s.
