PROVIDENCE – A person in their 60s from Providence County contracted Rhode Island’s first probable human case of West Nile virus this year, according to health officials.
The person, who is currently hospitalized, tested positive for the virus after symptoms began in early September, the state Department of Health said in a statement on Thursday.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will conduct further testing to confirm the case, officials said.
According to the state health agency, West Nile virus is the leading cause of mosquito-borne disease in the continental United States.
There are no vaccines to prevent or mediations to treat the virus, and most people infected do not feel sick: “About one in five people who are infected develop a fever and other symptoms,” health officials said.
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“About one out of 150 infected people develop a serious, sometimes fatal, illness,” the health department said.
The most recent mosquito samples tested by the Rhode Island State Health Laboratories found no samples collected on Sept. 15 around the state tested positive for the virus, Eastern Equine Encephalitis, or Jamestown Canyon virus, officials said.
“There have been no animal cases of mosquito-borne disease in Rhode Island this year, but 13 mosquito samples have been confirmed with [West Nile virus] so far this season,” officials said.
Christopher Gavin can be reached at christopher.gavin@globe.com.