Rabies, West Nile Lurking Locally

By John Voket

The name of the subject family was modified on its request.

Newtown resident Mike Magruder and his family were sleeping peacefully one recent evening when an intermittent squeaking woke him from a sound sleep. He followed the noise into his young daughter’s room and noticed a children’s toy on the pillow beside her face that had somehow been activated, producing the annoying sound.

But when he went to pick up the toy, Mr Magruder was shocked to discover it was a live bat. He dropped the animal, roused his daughter and the rest of the family, then called a commercial pest removal service to get rid of the critter.

“The guy caught the bat, and said he would take it to Hartford to be tested,” June Magruder said. “He told us it was a one in 200 chance that it would test positive for rabies.”

Unfortunately for the Magruders, the test came back positive.

Since the animal was confirmed to be rabid, the entire family sought preventative vaccination treatment to protect them from contracting the typically fatal disease. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP), rabies is an acute, progressive, fatal encephalomyelitis caused by neurotropic viruses.

All mammals are believed to be susceptible, but reservoirs (carriers) are carnivores, particularly bats. Although dogs are the main reservoir in developing countries, bats are still the world’s leading carriers and transmitters of rabies, reports the CDCP.

The Magruders learned the rabies vaccine program is very expensive, and not extremely convenient.

“Pharmacies do not carry the vaccine,” Ms Magruder said. “It is only found at a hospital, so we had to receive our shots at the emergency room.”

 After the initial series of shots, which are typically administered to the gluteus maximus, everyone in the family had to return on day three, seven, 14, and 28 for a booster in the arm.

“The Danbury Hospital ER has been amazing,” Ms Magruder said. “They have been so helpful about making this as easy as possible.”

Newtown Health District (NHD) Director Donna Culbert wants to be proactive, with the Magruder family’s help, in warning local families about the potential for exposure to rabies. So far this season, the NHD has sent 21 suspect animals from its Bridgewater-Roxbury-Newtown jurisdiction for rabies testing, and two of those cases came back positive.

On a related front, Ms Culbert is also concerned that one of this year’s handful of positive West Nile Virus mosquitoes was captured August 7 in Danbury, and one person from that neighboring town has contracted the illness.

“It’s just too close for comfort,” she told The Newtown Bee on Wednesday. “That’s why the Newtown Health District continues to encourage residents to take precautions to avoid West Nile Virus, along with Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses.”

The State Mosquito Management Program announced this week that mosquitoes trapped on August 7 in Danbury and August 6 in Newington have tested positive for West Nile Virus (WNV). These are the first positive mosquitoes identified in Danbury and Newington by the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station (CAES) this year.

“The State Mosquito Management Program has an excellent system for monitoring West Nile Virus and alerting the public. Announcements should be taken seriously,” said Governor M. Jodi Rell. “Connecticut residents and visitors, particularly people over 50, should take precautions to avoid mosquito bites during the mosquito season, especially in areas where West Nile Virus is identified.”

According to the state health department, one resident of Danbury and another in New London are recovering after having been diagnosed with WNV-associated illnesses last month.

“The increasing number of locations with positive mosquitoes is an indication that West Nile virus is building,” said Theodore G. Andreadis, PhD, chief medical entomologist, Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station. “The peak season is usually from mid-August through mid-September.”

Ms Culbert said it is of critical importance to avoid mosquito bites by limiting time spent outdoors at dawn and dusk as these are the peak biting times for mosquitoes; to wear protective clothing — long sleeves, long pants, and socks; use repellent per the product’s instructions; place mosquito netting over infant carriers when outdoors with infants; and install or repair screens for windows and doors to keep mosquitoes outdoors.

“In addition, it is important to discourage mosquitoes from living and breeding around the home,” the health director said. “Dump standing water, clean clogged roof gutters, change water in birdbaths, clean and chlorinate swimming pools and covers.

“It cannot be emphasized enough – it is important to dump any standing water on your property. An empty cup or even a saucer under a flower pot can hold enough water to allow mosquitoes to lay their eggs,” Ms Culbert added.

Residents have called the NHD office with concerns about water bodies on their property. If the water body is a stagnant one, it can be treated with “dunks,” which are larvicide tablets (a nontoxic biological substance that kills mosquito eggs) that look like small donuts.

“You can obtain dunks at Newtown Hardware Store,” she said. “If the water body is not stagnant; it has a continuous flow of water through it, then fish and other wildlife will likely eat the mosquitoes and their eggs and applying larvicide may not be necessary.”

Again this year, the Newtown Public Works Department continues its larvicide program, where a similar chemical to what is found in the dunks is placed in catch basins throughout the entire town, Ms Culbert said.

Turning her attention back to the risk of rabies, Ms Culbert said becoming exposed to the virus can happen to anyone.

“Sometimes the best of intentions can create a risk for rabies exposure when one might not otherwise exist,” she said. That can happen when handling dead animals, especially bats, when they are found inside or around the home.

Anyone coming upon a dead animal should contact the local animal control officers or the police department immediately so the animal can be handled properly.

“If you do come upon a dead animal, especially if you discover a dead bat inside the home in the morning, never touch it unless you are wearing gloves … better yet, call animal control,” she said.

The local animal control officers can determine whether the animal may be rabid, or require testing. Ms Culbert believes it is better to be safe than risk contracting the fatal illness.

“Bottom line, if a human contracts rabies and begins exhibiting symptoms, the virus is already too far advanced to be treated,” she said. Since so many of Newtown’s homes are in semirural or rural locations, the prevalence to exposure is naturally higher.

“There are just a lot more animals in proximity to humans,” she said, “and a lot more people doing things outside that can lead them to possible exposure.”

To date, the local health office has sent more than a dozen bats, three opossum, a woodchuck, three raccoons, and a housecat for testing. And besides the Magruders’ bat, which was tested by their pest control professional, another bat as well as one of the raccoons have tested positive.

“Right now there are three Newtown families going through the vaccination process, also referred to as rabies prophylaxis,” she said. “While in a couple of cases we have the positive animal, in one case the animal got away so we are just erring on the side of caution — you can’t fool around with rabies.”

According to Ms Magruder, once the initial program of shots was dispensed, the balance of the program was significantly less invasive.

“I guess it feels just like a flu shot, and sometimes the next day it is a little sore,” she said. “All I can say is, take it from one of your neighbors: if you find a bat in your home the best thing is if you can catch it and test it then you will know for sure if you have been exposed.

“If you can’t catch the bat then you are faced with the decision to treat or not to treat yourself or your family,” she added. “But it’s not a hard decision I guess. Just remember rabies is fatal.”

Take Precautions To Avoid WNV

So far this summer, West Nile virus positive mosquitoes have been identified in five towns: Danbury, Manchester, Newington, Stamford, and West Haven. The positive mosquitoes were Culex pipiens, a species known to be important in WNV transmission in this region. Two persons, residents of Danbury and New London, are recovering after having been diagnosed with WNV-associated illnesses last month.

To monitor WNV, the CAES maintains a network of 91 mosquito-trapping stations in 72 municipalities throughout the state from June through October. Mosquito traps are set by the CAES every ten days at each site on a rotating basis. Mosquitoes are grouped (pooled) for testing according to species, collection site, and date.

Most people who are infected and become ill with WNV will have a mild illness that may include fever, headache, body aches, nausea, vomiting, or a skin rash. Less frequently, people develop severe illness of the nervous system that can also include neck stiffness, disorientation, loss of consciousness, tremors, muscle weakness, and paralysis.

Persons older than 50 years of age are more likely than younger persons to suffer the more severe health consequences if they become infected with WNV. In 2006, eight Connecticut residents were diagnosed with WNV infection acquired in the state and one person was infected while traveling out of the state. One person, a resident of New Haven over 80 years of age, died.

Local households are advised to adopt the following precautions to avoid mosquito bites:

*Minimize time outdoors at dusk and dawn.

*Be sure door and window screens are tight fitting and in good repair.

*Wear shoes, socks, long pants, and long-sleeved shirts. Clothing material should be tightly woven.

*Use mosquito netting when sleeping outdoors.

*Consider using mosquito repellent when it is necessary to be outdoors. Always use according to label instructions. The most effective repellents contain DEET or Picaridin.

*When using DEET, use the lowest concentration effective for the time spent outdoors (for example, six percent lasts approximately two hours and 20 percent for four hours) and wash treated skin when returning indoors. Do not apply under clothing, to wounds or irritated skin, the hands of children, or to infants less than 2 months old.

Measures to reduce mosquitoes around the home include:

*Dispose of water-holding containers, such as ceramic pots, used tires, and tire swings.

*Drill holes in the bottom of containers such as those used for recycling.

*Clean clogged roof gutters.

*Turn over objects that may trap water when not in use, such as wading pools and wheelbarrows.

*Change water in bird baths on a weekly basis.

*Clean and chlorinate swimming pools. When pools are not in use, use pool covers and drain when necessary.

*Use landscaping to eliminate areas where water can collect on your property.

Additional resources for information on West Nile virus and mosquito management:

*The Department of Public Health website at www.dph.state.ct.us

*The Department of Environmental Protection, www.ct.gov/dep

*The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, www.ct.gov/caes

*The Department of Agriculture, www.ct.gov/doag

*The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, www.cdc.gov