West Nile Risk in Middlesex, Norfolk County Communities: DPH

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health Friday announced that two more cases of West Nile Virus had been found in humans, bringing this year's total to five in the Bay State.

One of the cases was a Norfolk County resident in her 40's who developed a milder form of the disease and was never hospitalized; the other, a Middlesex County man in his 80's, was hospitalized but has since been discharged.

Both patients were diagnosed with the virus by testing completed by the Massachusetts State Public Health Laboratory.

As a result of the identification of multiple human cases in a defined geographic region, the DPH has elevated the risk of human contraction from mild to high in the surrounding communities.

According to the DPH, Arlington, Belmont, Boston, Brookline, Cambridge, Chelsea, Everett, Medford, Newton, Revere, Somerville, Watertown and Winthrop are now at high risk for the remainder of the season.

"Despite the anticipated cooler temperatures, the species of mosquitoes that carry WNV will continue to be quite active for at least the next several weeks," said DPH State Public Health Veterinarian Dr. Catherine Brown in a formal statement. "We are urging people, especially people that are older or whose immune systems are compromised, to be especially vigilant about avoiding mosquito bites."

In 2015, there were ten human cases of West Nile Virus identified in Massachusetts, eight of which were diagnosed in the month of September.

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