The case was logged by the Veterinary Directorate General on 26 August, which concluded “the infected ani-
mal died from an encephalitis caused by the West Nile Virus.”
Ana Cristina Guerreiro, public health delegate to the Algarve, told Lusa News Agency that the first cases of infection by the Nile virus in the region emerged in 2004 when “two tourists who had been birdwatching were diagnosed in their countries of origin.”
“Then it was identified that they must have been infected by mosquitoes in the region”, she explained, adding “since then there have been no other cases in humans, until last year, when there was one.”
The Algarve’s authorities conduct an ongoing programme which monitors the possibility of contracting diseases transmitted by insects such as mosquitoes and ticks.
After last year’s case, she said, the authorities did some “extra work.”
“This year, when we learned about the horse, we set the wheels in motion a little earlier and we contacted the Town Hall and the Algarve Water Company to implement measures to reduce the risk to the population, by applying larvicide in the areas surrounding Loulé in which we identified some areas with stagnant water and which contained some larvae”, Ms. Guerreiro said.
Doctors in the region have also been contacted to warn them to be on the lookout for any possible cases of infection, given that West Nile Virus is a rare disease.
Dry weather and wind, she elaborated, is helping further reduce any possible contagion by keeping mosquito activity low.
Ana Cristina Guerreiro said the recent case of the horse is an “isolated incident” and that the horse must have been infected by a mosquito infected by a bird passing through the area.
Recommendations from the Veterinary Directorate General include “avoiding areas close to stagnant water, namely water treatment plants or swampy areas, used tyre collection points, cemetery vases and plant pots.”
It suggests the population in general should use insect repellents or devices to ward off mosquitoes, and adopt “environmental hygiene measures to eliminate stagnant waters.”
Loulé Mayor Vitor Aleixo said that after being contacted by the Regional Health Centre last week regarding the measures to adopt, a larvicide was applied along all waterlines in the county “within an hour.”
The West Nile Virus is not transmissible from person-to-person. In 20 percent of infections it can cause light fevers, which in rare cases can evolve into viral meningitis.