Victoria has recorded its first human loss of life from the Murray Valley encephalitis virus in virtually 50 years.
A lady in her 60s who died earlier this month was initially thought to have contracted the Japanese encephalitis virus, however well being officers confirmed this was the Murray Valley encephalitis virus after additional testing.
The lady was from the shire of Buloke in western Victoria and frolicked in Buloke Shire and Swan Hill throughout her acquisition interval.
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It’s believed that she possible grew to become contaminated in early January, in accordance with Vic Well being.
Victoria has not recorded a human case of the lethal virus since 1974.
Human instances of the virus have been recorded in NSW and South Australia in 2011.
Most individuals contaminated with the Murray Valley encephalitis virus shouldn’t have any signs, and fewer than one % develop a medical sickness.
Individuals who fall sick to the virus usually expertise signs equivalent to nausea, complications, vomiting and myalgia.
Victoria’s Chief Well being Officer Professor Brett Sutton has beforehand warned Victorians to take precautionary steps to keep away from mosquito bites that would result in varied sicknesses.
“We are able to all shield ourselves by avoiding mosquito bites, together with masking up, sporting unfastened becoming clothes and utilizing mosquito repellants,” Sutton mentioned.
For some, the Murray Valley encephalitis virus could result in long-term neurological issues and loss of life.
There’s at present no vaccine therapy for the virus.
