West Nile Virus Case Confirmed in Lane County

Public health officials are reminding the community to protect themselves from mosquito bites and to clear mosquito breeding sources from their property

(EUGENE, Ore. ) - Lane County Environmental Health confirmed a case of West Nile Virus in Lane County.

A bird collected from Springfield on Monday, Aug. 6th tested positive for the virus.

This is an indicator that the virus is in the metro area and probably in other parts of the county.

Public health officials are reminding the community to protect themselves from mosquito bites and to clear mosquito breeding sources from their property.

"It’s important that people know this is out there and take precautions to protect themselves and their families from mosquito bites," said Tamara Wilhite, Environmental Health specialist.

Lane County Environmental Health began its annual mosquito testing for the West Nile virus in July.

The mosquito-borne virus first reached the United States in 1999 and began its march westward, reaching Oregon in 2004.

The Oregon Department of Human Services reported 73 human cases of West Nile virus in Oregon last year.

Last year in the U.S., there were 4,269 WNv cases as reported by the CDC, and 177 deaths. In comparison, flu-related deaths are more than 20,000 every year in this country.

Lane County found one bird infected with the virus near the Santa Clara area of Eugene in 2006.

Public Health officials agree that continuing surveillance efforts and taking steps toward prevention are vital in preventing human infections.

1. Look around your home and property and eliminate sources of standing water that can support mosquito breeding, for example gutters, birdbaths and old tires.

2. Because mosquitoes are most active at dawn and dusk, avoid playing or working outside at these times or wear long pants, long sleeve shirts and other protective clothing.

3. Wear an effective insect repellant. So far, DEET has been found to work the best. Follow label directions when using any repellant. But, do not apply DEET to children younger than two.

4. Make sure that doors and windows have tight-fitting screens. Repair or replace screens that have tears or holes. Don’t leave doors open without a screen.

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Dave Moskowitz MD FACP August 13, 2007 12:46 pm (Pacific time)

This article fails to mention that a safe and effective treatment for WNV encephalitis was published three years ago.

My company developed (and owns a pending patent for) the treatment, and has been using it in an ongoing free clinical trial for the past 5 summers.

Our initial results on 8 patients seen in Sept, 2003 were published in a peer-reviewed medical journal in July, 2004 (1). Publication in a peer-reviewed medical journal is all that's required for a treatment to officially exist.

Our approach lowers the host's response to the virus--the so-called "cytokine storm"--rather than targeting the virus itself. So it may work for most viruses as a kind of general viral antidote.

I was asked to describe our treatment to the White House Office of Science Technology and Policy (OSTP) in June, 2004. I volunteered to brief the Dept of Homeland Security later that summer. The UN is aware of our treatment in the context of avian influenza. It was included in the Project BioShield II Act of 2005, co-sponsored by Senators Lieberman, Hatch, and Brownback (2).

The FDA is happy for our trial to proceed, since we use already FDA-approved medications which are known to be safe for the general population.

I just described our treatment this past Friday, August 3rd, at the BARDA Industry Day hosted by the Dept of Health and Human Services (3).

The only agency not supportive of our efforts is the CDC, for reasons known only to them.

21 patients with WNV have responded so far, out of 25 (84%). We've also treated 4 horses (3 responded) and 12 birds (6 responded; birds present sicker than humans and horses). Our WNV trial is free from our end. The blood pressure meds we use are inexpensive (around $1/day) and are available by prescription from any drugstore in the country.

Anybody who wants to download our trial documents can do so at any time of day or night from our homepage at www.genomed.com.

Beginning treatment early--within the first 48 hrs of encephalitis symptoms--seems to be the only way to avoid long-term sequelae such as paralysis, chronic fatigue, cognitive problems, etc. WNV is notorious for still affecting half of WNV victims 18 months later.

If a family knows about our treatment ahead of time, they'll be in a much better position to get it prescribed for their relative who comes down with the disease.

Thanks to the inexplicable behavior of the CDC, which has redefined public health in the same way that FEMA redefined rescue, neither physicians nor patients have heard about our treatment for the fifth year in a row.

References 1. Moskowitz DW, Johnson FE. The central role of angiotensin I-converting enzyme in vertebrate pathophysiology. Curr Top Med Chem. 2004;4(13):1433-54. PMID: 15379656 (For PDF file, click on paper #6 at: http://www.genomed.com/index.cfm?action=investoranddrill=publications)

2. Section 2151 of the Project BioShield II Act of April 28, 2005 (http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=s109-975)

3. http://www.hhs.gov/disasters/press/newsroom/spotlight/2007bardaday.html

Sincerely, Dave Moskowitz MD
Chairman, CEO and Chief Medical Officer
GenoMed, Inc.
"Our business is public health(TM)"

website: www.genomed.com
Ticker symbol: GMED.PK (on the OTC Pink Sheets)

Editor's note: This information is posted without authenticity, it is a rare example of where we will leave Web address information in a comment. David, you can contact our ad department at bonnie@salem-news.com. This one is on us since you discuss something that can help people

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