West Nile fever

West Nile fever is a viral disease caused by a flavivirus that primarily affects birds, but can also infect horses and humans. The virus is spread by infected mosquitoes, which act as vectors between birds and other vertebrates.
In birds, symptoms of West Nile fever can vary from species to species, but often include lethargy, fluffy feathers, loss of coordination, tremors, convulsions and sudden death. Certain species of birds, especially passerines, are particularly susceptible to infection and can act as indicators of the presence of the virus in a particular area.

In horses, the disease is mainly manifested by neurological symptoms such as ataxia (lack of coordination), limb weakness, muscle tremors, depression, loss of appetite and fever. In severe cases, paralysis and death can occur. However, many infected horses do not show any symptoms.

Prevention in horses consists mainly of vaccination and control of the mosquito population. There is no specific treatment or vaccine for birds, so it is important to focus on vector control and monitoring of wild bird populations.

Description

Testing options:

  • serological testing - ELISA (IgG, IgM)
  • virological testing - PCR

Virology and serology

MVDr. Jitka Horníčková
+420 604 917 488
jitka.hornickova@svupraha.cz

Molecular biology

RNDr. Alexander Nagy, Ph.D.
+420 770 118 897
alexander.nagy@svupraha.cz

Information and Results

Ester Kučerová
+420 251 031 302
ester.kucerova@svupraha.cz

Download

Typ souboru Název Velikost
General application form 0,1 MB Stáhnout
General application form 0,4 MB Stáhnout