According to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), the West Nile virus has been found in UK mosquitoes for the first time.
The general population is at “very low” danger, it continued, although medical professionals will receive advice.
About 20% of instances of the West Nile virus might result in headaches, a high fever, and skin eruptions, although most cases only cause very modest symptoms or none at all.
According to the health department, there is currently no proof that the virus is still being spread in birds or mosquitoes in the United Kingdom.
Although there have been seven travel-related cases since 2000, there have not yet been any human West Nile virus cases in the UK.
The West Nile virus has spread recently and is endemic in a number of places throughout the world, including areas of Europe and South America.
In 2023, a study conducted by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) and the UKHSA discovered viral fragments in mosquitoes collected in the United Kingdom.
According to Dr Meera Chand, a deputy director for travel health and infections at UKHSA, “although this is the first detection of West Nile Virus in mosquitoes in the UK so far, it is not unexpected as the virus is already widespread in Europe.”
The project’s lead, Dr. Arran Folly, stated that the virus’s discovery is a part of a “wider changing landscape, where, in the wake of climate change, mosquito-borne diseases are expanding to new areas.”
He stated that although the Aedes vexans mosquito is indigenous to the UK, rising temperatures could introduce non-native species and the risk of infectious disease.
Protests were staged in Seville, Spain, last year following the deaths of five illness victims.
Mosquitoes are frequently seen in damp environments. Experts advise eliminating standing water sources, which serve as breeding grounds, and implementing preventative measures including bed nets and insect repellent.
