DENTON COUNTY, Texas — Denton County health officials reported the county's first human case of the West Nile virus this year.
The community member lives in Denton and was diagnosed with the West Nile neuroinvasive disease.
“We ask community members to take preventive actions to lower their risk of contracting a mosquito-borne illness," Denton County Public Health Chief Epidemiologist Juan Rodriguez said in a released statement.
Denton County Public Health is asking residents to take the following steps to minimize risk of contracting the virus:
- Drain standing water in your yard and neighborhood to minimize mosquito breeding sites such as bird baths, flower pots and clogged rain gutters. Consider the use of BTI briquettes, often called mosquito dunks, in standing water that cannot be eliminated.
- Dress in long sleeves and pants when you are outside and spray thin clothing with repellent.
- Defend yourself by using EPA approved repellent. Check for ingredients like DEET, Picaridin, or oil of lemon eucalyptus.
Dallas County announced the year's first human case of West Nile Virus on Aug. 6. The patient lives in Highland Park within the 75205 ZIP code.
