West Nile Virus info.

["Steven Proe" <trails@aaahawk.com>]

Hi Folks this may be of interest to some:
Steven


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HORSE VACCINE FOR WEST NILE VIRUS APPROVED

FORT DODGE, Iowa, August 2, 2001 (ENS) - The U.S. Department of Agriculture
(USDA) has issued a conditional license for a vaccine intended to protect
horses from West Nile virus.

The license will allow Fort Dodge Laboratories, Inc., a division of American
Home Products, Inc., to produce the vaccine under the agency's special
circumstance provisions. Under these regulations, a product that is shown to
be pure and safe and demonstrates a reasonable expectation of effectiveness
may be licensed while data to establish effectiveness and potency are still
being obtained.

West Nile virus is a mosquito borne virus that was first detected in the
U.S. in 1999. The virus, which can cause encephalitis, or inflammation of
the brain in animals and in some cases, humans, has been found in Africa,
western Asia, the Middle East, the Mediterranean region of Europe, and most
recently in various parts of the eastern United States.

Although horses can be infected by the virus, there is no documentation that
infected horses can spread the virus to uninfected horses or other animals.
In 1999 and 2000, 85 horses were infected with the virus, and 32 of these
cases resulted in death.

The most common carriers of the virus are birds. Health authorities are
testing bird carcasses across the eastern U.S. for evidence of the spread of
West Nile, and taking precautions to control the mosquito population where
possible.

In recent weeks, the presence of the virus has been confirmed in Alexandria,
Virginia; the District of Columbia; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. One
human case of the virus has been confirmed this year, in Florida.

In 1999, West Nile Virus was responsible for 62 human illnesses, including
seven deaths in the New York/New Jersey region.


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