El Paso County Public Health is preparing for a heavy season of West Nile virus cases caused by mosquito bites, despite decreased rainfall for the year.

Last year, more Coloradans died from West Nile than any other state. Fifty-one people succumbed to the virus in Colorado in the 2023 season, which stretches from June until around the end of September. That’s when low temperatures usually kill off the mosquitoes for the winter.

Last year in Colorado, a total 634 people reported the West Nile virus. The state with the second-most reported cases, California, had 473 total, but it also has a much larger population.

In El Paso County specifically, the area saw 51 cases reported to the public health department.

While abnormal amounts of rain in 2023 presented the perfect breeding ground for the mosquitoes, El Paso’s 2024 season also could see a heavy load of cases.

“Every year is a little different, but I would say there’s no reason for us to expect that this year would be any less than last year,” said Haley Zachary, El Paso’s communicable disease program manager. “We are continuing to prepare for a heavy season, although we hope for less cases.”

Statewide, the first person hospitalized with neurological symptoms for the 2024 season was infected in Arapahoe County, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

Scientists have been identifying the Culex mosquito in their traps for weeks.

About 80% of humans who are bitten by a Culex mosquito carrying the West Nile virus will not suffer symptoms. Typically, the symptoms are mild and similar to the flu; people may experience headaches, malaise and joint pain.

“It’s really only fewer than 1% of people that get a really serious illness that can lead to hospitalization and death, and that is typically characterized by really severe head

aches and confusion,” Zachary said.

Other complications of a severe infection include swollen lymph nodes, disorientation, muscle weakness and coma.

It is important to seek medical assistance if one starts to experience more severe symptoms.

There is no cure, vaccine or antibiotic for West Nile virus in humans, but there is a vaccine for horses, which are hit particularly hard by the disease.

“It’s people over the age of 50 that tend to develop those more severe side effects and the severe illness,” Zachary said. “It’s really just heavily dependent on who you are, what your what your lifestyle looks like, what your health looks like, and then how quickly you’re seeking care.”

Four D’s

West Nile can be avoided, said Rachel Reichardt, Jefferson County Public health environmental health specialist Rachel Reichardt, if partiers, fireworks-watchers and parade-goers follow the “four D’s:”

• Dawn and Dusk — Use caution at these times that the Culex feed.

• Defense — Use mosquito repellent you are comfortable with. Reichardt said that if Deet is not for you, “lemon eucalyptus oil has been found to be protective.”

• Drain — Mosquitoes can breed in the smallest puddle. Said Reichardt, “They love stagnant water to breed in. When rain comes, dump out the planters and buckets around your home.”

• Dress — To prevent bites, wear long sleeves and pants, which can be loose-fitting for relief on hot days.

“The more time you spend outside without any kind of mosquito protection, the more likely you are to be bit by an infected mosquito,” Zachary said.

“When we see people or communities that spend a lot of time outside, if they are not protecting themselves, then the likelihood that they’re going to be exposed to West Nile virus increases.”