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Jump to Key Points AMSTERDAM, Sept 10 (Reuters) - Three people in the Netherlands have died from an infection caused by the West Nile virus in recent weeks, the country's public health institution RIVM said on Thursday, following an increased number of cases in Europe.
The RIVM last month reported a first death caused by the West Nile virus, a week after it had found the first infection contracted in the Netherlands since 2020.
The institution said the number of infections had risen to 18, and two more people had died in a Dutch hospital.
The virus, which mostly spreads to people through mosquito bites, can cause severe illness in about one in 150 people who are infected, according to the World Health Organization.
- 18 confirmed infections; 3 deaths reported in recent weeks.
- First Netherlands-acquired infection since 2020 reported last month.
- West Nile virus spreads mainly via mosquito bites.
- Severe illness occurs in ~1/150 infected persons.
- Warmer temperatures likely ↑ mosquito range/time; cases ↑ in Greece, Italy.
The WHO has said warmer temperatures are giving mosquitoes more time and territory to spread the West Nile virus across Europe, which has experienced a record series of heatwaves this year.
Cases of West Nile virus have also climbed in Greece and Italy.
(Reporting by Bart Meijer; editing by Barbara Lewis)
