The number of human cases of West Nile virus in Andalucia has risen to 12 after three more patients were detected in Sevilla province.
The trio consist of a man from La Puebla del Rio, a man from Bollullos de la Mitacion and a woman from Coria del Rio.
All three are being treated in hospital, with the patient from Bollullos suffering from meningoencephalitis, one of the most serious neurological complications associated with the virus.
The other two are also receiving treatment at Sevilla’s Virgen del Rocío University Hospital.
The latest infections come as the Junta expands its surveillance measures.
Lopera, in Jaen province, and Castilblanco de los Arroyos, in Sevilla province, have both been declared areas on alert following the detection of West Nile virus circulation, despite no human infections having yet been confirmed there.
The alert status will remain in force for at least four weeks, or until an equivalent period passes without any new human cases or evidence of the virus being detected in mosquitoes, birds or horses.
Meanwhile, the alert has been extended in La Puebla del Rio until August 21 and in Coria del Rio until August 23.
Sevilla Provincial Council has also announced that it will activate the highest level of its mosquito surveillance and control plan throughout August.
On the Costa del Sol, Fuengirola and Las Lagunas de Mijas remain under alert despite no confirmed human infections.
Mijas Town Hall has stepped up mosquito control measures by increasing fumigation in wetlands, drains and public spaces from once every two weeks to weekly within a radius of up to 1.5km from where infected mosquitoes were detected. The enhanced measures will remain in place until at least August 21.
Health authorities say the two Malaga municipalities continue to undergo intensified entomological surveillance, including mosquito trapping and PCR testing to determine whether the virus is circulating locally.
Across Andalucía, health officials have now recorded eight mild cases and four neuroinvasive cases, the most severe form of the disease.
Human infections have been detected in Sevilla, Palomares del Río, Villamanrique de la Condesa, La Puebla del Río, Bollullos de la Mitacion, Coria del Río and Aznalcazar.
With the addition of Lopera and Castilblanco de los Arroyos, there are now 18 municipalities across Andalucia officially designated as areas on alert.
The list includes Torredonjimeno in Jaen, Salobreña in Granada, Fuengirola and Las Lagunas de Mijas in Malaga, and the Sevilla municipalities of Almensilla, Aznalcazar, Bollullos de la Mitacion, Castilblanco de los Arroyos, Coria del Rio, Constantina, Gelves, La Puebla del Rio, Mairena del Aljarafe, Palomares del Rio, San Juan de Aznalfarache, Sevilla and Villamanrique de la Condesa.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
