Case of West Nile Virus in Platte County

GILLETTE, Wyo. (AP) — Health officials say an older woman from Platte County has tested positive for West Nile virus — the first confirmed human case in Wyoming this year.

The Wyoming Department of Health says that around this time last year, the state had 13 cases, which included the death of a Park County man. The Gillette News Record reports (http://bit.ly/1BSeCoa ) that since the virus first arrived in Wyoming in 2002, the highest number of cases reported in a single year was 393.

Initial human symptoms can include fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, muscle aches, weakness and rash. More severe symptoms can include stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, vision loss, paralysis and even death.

The virus is carried by mosquitoes and spread through their bites.