West Nile case in Bulgaria linked to Cyprus

Two cases of the West Nile Virus have been confirmed in Bulgaria, with one of the patients said to have lived in Cyprus during a part of the summer.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Bulgaria has not issued an update as of Thursday morning, but according to Philenews, the health ministry in Bulgaria had issued a statement regarding a 48-year-old Bulgarian man who was diagnosed with a WNV case.

The man, said to be from Pazardzhik in southern Bulgaria, is a construction worker who had been living for the last two months in Cyprus.

Upon his return to his country, according to Bulgarian officials, the worker started running a fever and generally feeling unwell. He was then immediately admitted to hospital with a known WNV infection.

Other towns were also on alert in Bulgaria, with an official statement saying clinics for infectious diseases in Belgrade and Nis have reported infected people. Most cases were associated with summer flu symptoms while the nervous system was affected in a number of other cases.

Based on additional media reports, there were other places besides Cyprus on the radar of Bulgarian officials regarding possible WNV infections.

According to State Medical Services of the Republic of Cyprus, nine WNV cases have been confirmed in the south this year up until August 16. All cases involved the neuroinvasive disease of the virus, with two patients remaining critical and four others being discharged from hospital.

Earlier this week, one confirmed WNV death took place in Greater Nicosia in the south with officials saying the patient was of very old age. Two other deaths have been recorded in the north, with Turkish Cypriot media attributing them to the West Nile.