Florida man may have West Nile virus

A man with symptoms of West Nile virus is said to be improving.

TALLAHASSEE, Florida (CNN) -- Florida health officials say a man in the state apparently has the West Nile virus. However, because it is the state's first human case of the disease, officials have asked the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia, to confirm the diagnosis.

State Health Department spokesman Frank Penela said a man over the age of 50 and from Madison County is undergoing medical tests that will be completed by the end of the week.

Authorities would not identify the man, who remained hospitalized. He had been in critical condition with fever, fatigue, dizziness, weakness, confusion, headaches and joint problems -- all symptoms of the disease, Penela said.

"He's actually getting better," Penela said.

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Concern about the disease is also evident in neighboring Georgia. Barbara Joye, a spokeswoman for the Georgia Department of Human Resources, which includes the state's Division of Public Health, said the division has received many calls from Georgia physicians with patients suffering from "apparent viral encephalitis."

"We are testing several of these, including a patient from the Waycross public health district" in south-central Georgia near the Florida border.

Mosquitoes spread the disease by feeding on the blood of infected birds. A person cannot spread the disease to another person. It can cause encephalitis, or swelling of the brain.

"There is no need to panic, but it is important to take the necessary measures to guard against mosquito bites," said Health Department Secretary Robert G. Brooks.

In addition to the one possible human case, the first cases of animals with the virus were discovered in Florida this month. Tests have been performed on 14 birds in six counties, and on one horse.

A medical alert that was issued last month for Holmes, Washington and Jackson counties has been extended to Bay, Calhoun, Gulf, Franklin., Liberty, Gadsden, Wakulla, Leon, Jefferson, Madison and Taylor counties.

In Georgia, authorities said a hawk found in June in DeKalb County, a suburb of Atlanta, tested positive for West Nile virus. The bird was found by a man walking his dog.

It was Georgia's second confirmed case in a bird. A crow infected with West Nile virus was found in Lowndes County, Georgia, by a citizen in early July.

Florida residents were urged to avoid outdoor activities between dusk and dawn, when mosquitoes are likely to bite; to wear long pants and long-sleeved shirts; to use mosquito repellent; and to get rid of stagnant water where mosquitoes might breed.

"Just spray and just do the common sense things you'd do at this time of the year," Penela said.

People over the age of 50 are at greatest risk of contracting West Nile, the department of health said.

The first case of West Nile Virus in the Western Hemisphere was reported in August 1999. From 1999 to 2000, 82 cases of the disease and nine deaths occurred in the New York City and New Jersey metropolitan areas.