A very rare disease

[Chookie]

http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/in ... 1601302007



Scot fights lethal mosquito virus

JEREMY WATSON (jwatson@scotlandonsunday.com)

JUST five weeks ago he was a carefree holidaymaker enjoying an extended break amid the glories of the New England countryside.

Michael Nicholson, a painter and decorator from Livingston, West Lothian, had flown into Boston airport and spent the last few days of his American vacation fishing with family and friends on a river in New Hampshire.

Click here to find out more!

Now 35-year-old Michael is in a coma in an Edinburgh hospital and, if he lives, is expected, at best, to be severely disabled for the rest of his life.

While in New Hampshire, Michael was bitten by a mosquito carrying the virus which causes Eastern Equine (horse) Encephalitis, also known as Triple E.

The condition is well known in the eastern states of the US, where Triple E, because of its high mortality rate, is regarded as one of the most serious mosquito-borne diseases on the North American continent. Michael is now believed to be the first confirmed case of the disease in Europe.

But Michael's family are concerned that the thousands of British tourists who travel to the popular New England area every year are given no official health warnings about mosquito-related Triple E.

[guppy]

this probably falls along the same line as alot of shark attacks are not reported in florida either..it ruins the tourist income...:-2