West Nile virus on the rise in the U.S.

A new CDC report finds that cases of West Nile virus are on the rise. There were more than 2,600 cases of the mosquito-borne disease in 2018, the highest number of cases since 2012. Overall, 2018’s case count was 25% higher than the median incidence of the disease between 2008 and 2017. People from 48 states — including Alaska for the first time — and D.C. last year were diagnosed with the disease, which is asymptomatic in most people but can cause more serious side effects like fever and muscle weakness. And a high number last year experienced serious conditions: 63% had a neurological side effect, the majority of which was encephalitis. Physicians should be more aware of conditions caused by viruses like West Nile, the report’s authors suggest.