West Nile Virus

It's a strain of encephalitis, and like rabies, it causes inflammation of the brain and spinal cord. The majority of cases cause only mild symptons but more severe cases can have long lasting effects and even cause death.

Prior to 1999, you'd have had to travel to Africa or the Middle East. but it also exists in parts of Europe, Russia Indonesia and India. And in 1999, itht the news by making its way to the USA.
Wherever your location, the primary cause of infection is a bite from a mosquito or some other blood feeding biting fly or tick.

Fever, headaches, vomiting, stiffness in the neck and back, confusion, drowsiness, difficulty walking, a kind of clumsiness.
Also, irritability and a sensitivity to light.

The easiest way is to limit your outdoor activity when mosquitoes and biting flies are most active (dawn and dusk).
nd o This isn't always practical and as we all know mosquitoes frequently make it into our houses - a second line of defense is to use a DEET based mosquito repellant and/or spray permethrin on your clothes and around your garden to kill mosquitoes, midges and ticks.

St. Louis Encephalitis exists in birds and gets transmitted to mosquitoes when they bite the birds - then re-transmitted onto humans when the mosquitoes bite us.

Eastern Equine Encephalitis and Western Equine Encephalitis affect horses - although humans can get them too. Again birds and mosquitoes are the culprits for infecting us and the horses.

LaCrosse Encephalitis primarily affects children. Chipmunks, squirrels and other small animals of that sort carry the disease and it makes its way to us by way of our beloved mosquito population.