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West Nile Virus: How you can protect yourself this season

by Shirley J. Casey

(As published in Homeopathy Today, July/August 2007)
 

These warm, long summer days invite us outdoors to enjoy our ­gardens, picnics, sports, and family gatherings like no other time of year. But they are often accompanied by the familiar sounds of buzzzzzzzz... SWAT! Those pesky mosquitoes are back at it again!

     Just a minor nuisance to enjoying the great outdoors? That’s not how mosquitoes are viewed in many parts of the world where serious mosquito-borne illnesses like yellow fever, dengue fever, malaria, and various forms of encephalitis are common. North America has seen only a few severe outbreaks of mosquito-borne illness in the last two centuries, so many of us may have grown complacent about avoiding mosquito bites—until recently with the arrival of the West Nile Virus.

What is it?

West Nile Virus (WNV) is a strain of viral encephalitis first isolated in Uganda in 1937. In the 1950s and 60s, it was found to have spread to North Africa, the Middle East, southern Europe, southwest Asia, and Australia. WNV was first noticed in New York City in 1999 with the appearance of wild crows dead in the streets, which were found to be infected with WNV. A small number of people became ill or died from the disease that year as well. WNV has since spread throughout the USA, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America.

How Serious is WNV?

What are the Symptoms?

People who develop symptoms from WNV typically get them 3 to 14 days after being bitten by an infected mosquito. “Mild” WNV symptoms may last from a few days to several weeks and may include:

• fever and chills
• headache and body aches
• nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, appetite loss
• swollen lymph glands
• skin rash on chest, stomach, and back
• fatigue, which can linger beyond several weeks.

More severe WNV infection can last several weeks or more and may be followed by secondary infections, such as hepatitis, pancreatitis, or myocarditis. Recovery is typically prolonged and may include a lengthy period of fatigue. In a few cases, neurological changes may be permanent. Severe symptoms may include:

• high fever
• intense headache
• neck stiffness
• disorientation, stupor, coma
• tremors, convulsions
• muscle weakness
• vision loss
• numbness, paralysis.

Who Gets WNV?

People who spend more time outdoors in the summer and fall, especially during dawn and dusk, are more likely to get bitten by an infected mosquito. Statistically speaking, younger people are less likely to experience even mild symptoms, while those older than 50 are more likely to develop serious symptoms. For example, in 2002, most of the people who died from WNV were over age 50, with more than half over age 77.

How is West Nile Virus spread?

Mosquitoes acquire West Nile Virus from feeding on infected birds. These carrier mosquitoes can then transmit WNV to other birds, animals, and humans via bites. WNV has been found in at least 317 species of birds as well as in people, horses, dogs, cats, alligators, squirrels, and other species.

     WNV tends to flare up in the summer and fall seasons when the species of mosquito that carry this virus are particularly active. Although WNV is usually transmitted via
a mosquito bite, it has also been acquired via blood-to-blood contact, organ transplants, breast-feeding, and birth (i.e., from mother to baby during pregnancy). Researchers are also studying other possible transmission methods, such as ticks, sand flies, and other biting insects. Some WNV researchers have also described transmission from birds that had ingested prey infected with WNV, including finches eating infected mosquitoes. They have also noted that some birds seemed to become infected after grooming each other.

How is WNV Diagnosed?

Patient symptoms and history are key to an initial WNV diagnosis because the most frequently used lab test for WNV might not be positive when symptoms first appear. The test measures WNV antibodies in the blood or cerebrospinal fluid of an infected person. While the test processing takes less than a week, shipping delays and backlogs have sometimes delayed results for more than a month. Also, inaccurate WNV test results have caused some confusion. For these reasons as well as the high cost of the test, many people with WNV never get tested.

What is the Conventional Treatment?

As is true for most viral illnesses, conventional medicine has no specific pharmaceutical treatment for WNV. Most cases have no noticeable symptoms and are therefore untreated. People with mild symptoms are expected to recover with rest, increased fluid intake, and over-the-counter symptom-relievers as needed. Those with severe cases may be hospitalized to receive supportive care, medications to reduce fevers, intravenous fluids to maintain hydration, respiratory assistance, and possibly antibiotics for secondary infections.

Can Homeopathy Help?

Homeopathy has been used successfully for more than two centuries to help people with a wide variety of viral illnesses, so it is no surprise that homeopaths also treat WNV symptoms. As always, the practitioner must follow basic homeopathic principles and processes by: conducting a thorough case-taking; identifying the patient’s full range of mental, emotional, and physical symptoms; repertorizing the symptoms; studying potential remedies in the materia medica; and determining which homeopathic remedy best matches the patient’s complete symptom picture. Homeopathy’s goal is to support the patient’s recovery to optimum health.

In Case of West Nile Virus Remedies to consider Below are some homeopathic remedies that may prove useful in the treatment of West Nile Virus infection. Please consult a comprehensive materia medica for additional indications, but remember that the person with WNV may not necessarily experience all the symptoms attributed to a particular remedy. As always, it is best to seek the help of experienced homeopaths and health professionals in severe cases. Belladonna. Seems to be the most commonly indicated remedy for the initial phase of West Nile Virus infection. Sudden and violent illness. Burning heat, bright redness, and dryness are marked. Mucous membranes become dry. High fever. Severe neuralgic pain, that comes and goes suddenly. Acuteness of senses. Wildly delirious, excited, ferocious. Noisy, cries out, talks fast. Very restless. Spasms, Shocks, jerking, twitching. Throbbing, hammering headache. Pupils dilated. Dry, hot mouth and throat. Urging to swallow, with choking. Throat feels constricted. Drinks in sips. Calcarea carbonica. Complementary to Belladonna; in many cases of WNV, Calcarea carbonica seemed to be helpful in the second phase of the illness, after Belladonna. The person may become very tired from physical and mental exertion. Vertigo. Dilation of pupils. Disturbed sleep. China. Debility from exhausting diseases. Profuse, exhausting discharges; loss of vital fluids, excessive suppuration, diarrhea, hemorrhages. Intermittent periodicity is very marked in fever and neuralgias. Baptisia. While Belladonna is an effective initial remedy in a broad range of human and animal WNV cases, some wildlife rehabilitators have found that Baptisia is often a better match than Belladonna in the Corvid family of birds (crows, magpies, blue jays, ravens). Conium** (Con) – Head pain. Vertigo. Photophobia and excessive lachrymation. Muscular weakness, especially lower extremities. Swollen glands. Abdominal pain. Nux vomica** (Nux-v) – Severe head pain. Pressure in head. Photophobia. Vertigo. Swelled head. Painfully stiff neck. Head and neck are easily chilled. Flashes and streaks in eyes. Arms go to sleep, numb, stiff feeling. Worse mental exertion. Worse cold; must be covered. Anxiety, irritability. **(Added by the author for this website posting. Not in original article.)

(The following three case examples demonstrate how effective homeopathy has been in treating cases of suspected WNV.)

(1.) A Case of Sudden Headache and Fever

A 36-year old woman in southeastern Wyoming developed a sudden headache and a fever of 102° in late August 2003. While “Mary” did not remember being bitten by a mosquito, she had been spending a lot of time in her yard. She also lived in a region considered a WNV hot zone—where there were many confirmed cases of WNV in people, horses, and birds, including some fatalities. A neighbor who had exactly the same symptoms had just been tested and confirmed for WNV, so Mary presumed that she too was likely to have WNV. Because the test for WNV is costly, and conventional medicine offers no treatment except supportive care, Mary decided against getting tested herself. She decided to treat herself with homeopathy.
In addition to being bothered by light and noise, Mary had severe nausea and a very dry throat. She chose the following symptoms from the repertory:

HEAD; INFLAMMATION, of; Brain
FEVER, HEAT; CEREBRO-SPINAL fever
HEAD PAIN; GENERAL; noise, from
HEAD PAIN; GENERAL; from light, aggravation in general
STOMACH; NAUSEA
THROAT; DRYNESS

     Mary included the first two rubrics because WNV is an encephalitis that often includes inflammation of the brain and a fever and because she knew that others who had successfully treated WNV with homeopathy had considered these symptoms when repertorizing. She included the last four rubrics to describe her specific symptoms.

     After reading about the possible remedies in the materia medica, Mary decided that Belladonna was the best match for her symptoms. In addition, she knew of several others who had taken Belladonna for WNV symptoms with excellent results. Since she had a sudden, serious, acute condition, was confident in her remedy selection, and had been previously very healthy (i.e., had a strong vital force), Mary decided to take a high potency dose (1M) of Belladonna. Within minutes, Mary’s fever dropped to 100°, and she started feeling better. When her fever began to increase eight to ten hours later, she took another dose of Belladonna, and her temperature dropped again. She continued taking Belladonna as needed, based on her symptoms, and ended up taking 3 doses of Belladonna 1M each day for 3 days until her temperature returned to normal and stayed there.
     Mary felt much better once her fever had gone, but she still tired easily and had some minor vertigo and oversensitivity to light. She also tended to feel more chilly than usual and wanted to keep warm. She was aware that when Belladonna is used effectively for the initial stage of a viral illness, sometimes another remedy is needed in later stages to “finish the cure.”
     Calcarea carbonica is considered complementary to Belladonna and is often used by homeopaths to follow Belladonna if the patient’s symptoms match. Mary believed her mild headache, light sensitivity, vertigo, chilliness, and low energy symptoms did match Calcarea carbonica, so she took a dose of Calcarea carbonica 200c. Her light sensitivity, vertigo, and overall energy improved gradually over the course of one day. A few days later, she took a second dose of Calcarea carbonica 200c when she noticed a slight relapse—and she felt better again. Mary repeated the Calcarea carbonica 200c one more time a week later and then felt normal. Her recovery was much faster than that of her neighbor or others she knew who had had WNV with similar symptoms.

(2.) Gardener swarmed by mosquitoes: high fever follows

A swarm of mosquitoes bit a 46-year-old woman on an early August morning when she was gardening. Four days later, “Jane” started feeling tired and achy. Her body and head became increasingly painful, and she felt feverish. Her eyes were dilated. Even though she was regularly drinking small amounts of water, her mouth was dry and her fever climbed to 105°. “I hurt all over!” Jane said, “Including my hair!” Jane’s terrible head pain was worse with light and sound.
Jane knew WNV was active in the area of Colorado where she lived and recognized that she had many of the symptoms. The fact that she had previously studied and helped repertorize WNV symptoms with her homeopathic study group made it easier and faster to analyze her own case. With the help of a friend from the group, she repertorized these symptoms:

HEAD; INFLAMMATION, of; Brain
FEVER, HEAT; CEREBRO-SPINAL fever
EYE; PUPILS; dilated
STOMACH; THIRST; small quantities, for; often
HEAD PAIN; GENERAL; noise, from
HEAD PAIN; GENERAL; light, from, aggravation in general

     After considering the top remedies and knowing Belladonna had helped others with WNV, Jane decided that Belladonna was the best match and took a dose of Belladonna 200c. She immediately started feeling better, and her fever dropped to 101°. When the fever would start to rise and she began feeling worse again, she would repeat the Belladonna 200c—about 4 times a day for two days.

     At this point, Jane still had a 100–101° fever, but her other symptoms changed. Her eyes were no longer dilated or as bothered by light, but her chest was now sore and her breathing a little difficult—like the early stage of a respiratory condition. Her family said she was getting very irritable, which she denied. The Belladonna did not seem to be helping her as much as before, and she realized that it no longer matched her symptoms as well either. So she changed the repertorization to the following rubrics:

HEAD; INFLAMMATION, of; Brain
FEVER, HEAT; CEREBRO-SPINAL fever
HEAD PAIN; GENERAL; noise, from
CHEST; INFLAMMATION; Lungs
RESPIRATION; DIFFICULT
MIND; IRRITABILITY

     Jane studied the resulting remedies and selected Phosphorus since it seemed to match her symptoms, including the respiratory difficulty. After one dose of Phosphorus 200c, her symptoms improved significantly. She continued taking it as needed, which was four times a day for another day and a half.

     Then a new symptom appeared: terribly uncomfortable abdominal bloat. So Jane added the rubric “Abdomen, distension” to her repertorization. She thought Lycopodium seemed to match her symptoms, so she changed to Lycopodium 200c. The bloat was reduced within hours, and she felt much better overall.

     Even so, Jane’s husband was worried because she was rarely sick, and the media had reported fatalities in her area from WNV, so Jane agreed to see her physician. After a complete examination, the doctor said he was impressed that she was doing so well considering that she had a fairly serious case. He felt she had probably developed pneumonia with the WNV, but that she was getting over it quickly. However, he did prescribe a three-day course of antibiotics that she could take “just to be safe.” At the request of her husband, Jane took the antibiotics just in case, but she believed that her carefully selected homeopathic remedies had already helped to speed her recovery.

     Jane was back to work part-time within ten days of the initial fever and full-time four days later. However, over the following two months, she noticed that her energy was not quite up to normal. She read in Sandra Perko’s Homeopathic Treatment of Influenza that the homeopathic remedy China officinalis had been used to help complete recovery in other cases where people had lingering fatigue after a serious viral illness. Jane took 2 doses of China 30c—and was back to normal within 3 days.

(3.) Suspected WNV in a pet goose

Anne, a veterinary technician for two homeopathic veterinarians, had kept two American Buff geese in her yard for about 20 years. Suddenly, the female goose stopped eating. She was lying down and seemed unable to move into a normal position. Her wings and legs seemed weak. An examination revealed that the goose was very feverish. She was extremely sensitive to light, her eyes were dilated, and she had difficulty swallowing, as if her throat was sore. Knowing that there were many local cases of WNV in birds with similar symptoms, Anne strongly suspected WNV, and her veterinarians agreed with her assessment. They repertorized:

HEAD; INFLAMMATION, of; Brain
FEVER, HEAT; CEREBRO-SPINAL fever
HEAD PAIN; GENERAL; light, from; aggravation in general
EYE; PUPILS; dilated
THROAT; SWALLOWING; difficult
EXTREMITIES; WEAKNESS; Upper Limbs + Lower Limbs

     Based on this repertorization, the description of Belladonna in the materia medica, and awareness that Belladonna had been helpful with similar WNV cases, they gave the bird a dose of Belladonna 1M. The goose seemed stronger within a day. The Belladonna 1M was continued 3 times a day for 4 days. In addition, the goose was given fluids, both orally and by injection. Anne also force-fed the goose with a large oral syringe, to keep up its strength. By the fourth day, the goose was eating independently, sitting normally, and then standing and walking for short periods.

     Anne then noticed that the goose was eating ravenously and drinking normally, but having difficulty maintaining weight. In addition, the goose had yellow wrinkled skin beneath her feathers and a very stiff neck.

Since Natrum muriaticum matched those symptoms and it had been effective in similar cases of birds with WNV, 2 doses of Natrum muriaticum 1M were administered 3 days apart. The goose recovered and lived three more years.
     She died of old age at 23. (Note: most American Buff geese have a lifespan of 18–20 years.)

Lessons learned

Homeopathic Belladonna was a good initial match for these three cases of suspected WNV and, indeed, it seems to be indicated in many WNV cases that I’ve researched. This is certainly good to know if you ever confront a case of WNV; but please remember that it is not the remedy for all WNV cases. Sometimes a different initial remedy will be required. As always, the homeopath works to find a remedy that matches the unique symptoms of the individual patient.
     Remember, too, that after the initial phase of the illness, additional remedies will likely be needed to complete the cure. In the three cases above, Belladonna was well indicated at first and helped the patients’ symptoms improve substantially; but when their symptoms changed, each patient needed a different remedy, based on the new presentation of symptoms. Experienced homeopaths will tell you that this is very typical in cases of viral illness like WNV or influenza: the prescriber needs to stay on top of the case, monitoring the patient’s symptoms through different phases of the illness and prescribing a new remedy when indicated. Less experienced homeopathic prescribers may be disappointed with their results if they do not realize this important aspect of treatment.

     Of course, in all WNV cases, it is also important to use good supplemental care, such as ensuring that sufferers get adequate fluids, food, and rest. Fevers may need to be addressed with mechanical cooling measures such as cool cloths. Backup support from homeopaths and other health professionals may be needed. When in doubt, always seek professional help.
     Have a safe summer!

     Samuel Hahnemann, the founder of homeopathy, successfully treated people with severe viral illnesses more than 200 years ago, using safe, gentle homeopathic remedies—and that tradition continues. It is good to know that homeopathy has something to offer WNV sufferers.

     But the best plan is to minimize the possibility of WNV in the first place. Enjoy your time outdoors, but stay away from those buzzing mosquitoes!

Resources

U.S. Centers for Disease Control: Search www.cdc/gov for WNV fact sheets.
National Wildlife Health Center: Search www.nwhc.usgs.gov for WNV fact sheets.
State health agencies often have specific information for residents.

© 2007 Shirley J. Casey

Author's Note - added after the article had been published

Viruses are well-known to mutate over the course of time. West Nile Virus (WNV) is no exception. For example, it seemed that those with WNV in 2003-05 had higher fevers than those who had WNV in 2006-07. Some of the cases in 2007 actually had rather low temperatures (96 degrees F) for several weeks. Patients continued to describe some of the other symptoms, such as severe head pain, extreme photophobia, stiff and swollen neck, a variety of neurological symptoms, mental dullness, digestive disturbance, extreme weakness, and overall lethargy. In addition, some of the raptors with WNV in 2007 were found to have more liver and spleen problems than cases in 2003-05. As described in the article, it is imperative to take the whole case for each patient and select the appropriate homeopathic remedy to match the symptoms. While Belladonna was effective in early stages of WNV with high fevers in 2003-05, other remedies may be more appropriate choices as the symptom picture changes.

     The patient and homeopath should be in frequent contact since WNV symptoms may change rapidly and dramatically during the course of the illness and require a different homeopathic remedy. Also, if the patient does not improve fairly quickly and steadily after a remedy, the homeopath should be informed immediately .

     In addition, it is essential to provide excellent supportive care, including rest and quiet in low light, adequate fluids (especially electrolytes), good nutrition and diet, and a calm, positive environment. Other treatments also may be considered, including herbal medicine (e.g., echinacea), Bioplasma (i.e., tissue salts), supplements and/or conventional medication. Consult with a health care professional as needed since severe WNV cases may be serious and have the potential for long-term consequences.  

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