First human West Nile virus case of 2025 for Illinois reported
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The first human case of West Nile virus this summer has been confirmed in Illinois.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that a person downstate, specifically in Southern Illinois, was hospitalized due to complications from West Nile.
This marks the earliest a West Nile case has been confirmed in Illinois since 2016. It also comes less than one week after the Illinois Department of Public Health announced it had found West Nile in 17 Illinois counties — including Cook, Will, and DuPage.
Illinois state health officials sounded the alarm Tuesday night, reminding people to protect themselves.
"It is something that we need to always be aware of," said Laura McGowan of Clarke, a company that works with various Chicagoland communities to trap and spray to reduce the number of mosquitoes. "West Nile virus is endemic to this area."
Experts noted that the heat wave of the past four days actually makes the dangers of the virus worse.
"So when you have hot weather, that's the ideal conditions for West Nile virus to start showing up," McGowan said.
She said while humans look to quench their thirst, so do mosquitoes.
"Hot and dry weather tends to reduce the water availability for birds and mosquitoes, and the amplification cycle with West Nile goes between birds and mosquitoes," said McGowan.
McGowan emphasized that any water left standing more than a week can also easily breed mosquitoes carrying the virus.
"Bird baths, baby pools, even like flowerpots that might have water in the bottom of them," said McGowan.
Meanwhile, with the July 4th holiday next week, more people will venture out, and more mosquitoes will be around to bite them too.
With the first human case of West Nile virus reported so early in the season in Illinois, health leaders want everyone to take heed.
Last week, former Evergreen Park Mayor Jim Sexton reflected on when he fell ill from West Nile in 2012. Side effects still remain.
"I did 45 days at Christ Hospital, two weeks in intensive care. There was a lot of encephalitis," Sexton said. "I would never wish this on anyone."
Last year, there were 69 confirmed cases of West Nile in Illinois — including three deaths. But human cases, again, are typically not seen so early.
"You know, June is very early for us," McGowan said. "Sometimes we see it in July, sometimes even in August — but because we know we have positive mosquito pools, we are going to get human cases."
The worst West Nile outbreak in the U.S. to date came in 2002. That year in Illinois alone, there were 884 cases across the state, and 67 deaths, with 42 of them in Cook County.
When it comes to the West Nile virus, the Illinois Department of Public Health stresses the three R's — reduce your exposure, repel using insect repellent, and report any standing water seen longer than a week, which can breed the virus.
The public is advised to wearing loose-fitting clothing, and, if possible, avoid peak mosquito feeding times, typically around dusk and dawn.
Severe illness from the West Nile virus can occur in about one in 150 people and is most likely to occur in people over age 55 or with weakened immune systems.
