Kane County tallies second West Nile case

A Huntley woman has become the second person in Kane County to contract the West Nile virus, Kane County Health Department officials reported Tuesday.

The second case makes Kane the only other county in the state besides Cook to have more than one reported human case this year.

The 74-year-old Huntley woman became ill in mid-September. The first West Nile case was a 28-year-old Aurora woman last month. Some 40 percent of Illinois' 11 cases involve people between the ages of 45 and 59, and more than 70 percent of the human cases have been found in women.

There have been 18 reported fatalities from West Nile virus nationally this year as of Sept. 23, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Only about two people out of 10 who are bitten by an infected mosquito will experience any illness. Illness from West Nile is usually mild and includes fever, headache and body aches. But serious illness, such as encephalitis and meningitis, and even death are possible. People 50 and older have the highest risk of severe disease.

Kane County Health Department spokesman Tom Schlueter said Wednesday that the Huntley woman was hospitalized but is expected to make a full recovery.

"Although our cases so far this year appear to be down, this is the time of year when we typically see the number start to rise, at least until the first frost," health department executive director Paul Kuehnert said in a written statement." It's not too late to take precautions to protect yourself and your family from West Nile virus."

Last year, Kane County saw 13 human cases of West Nile. There were four in 2006, there 17 in 2005, two in 2004, none in 2003 and nine in 2002.