Child recovers from rare encephalitis: Brain infection carried by mosquitoes

by Debbie Gilbert

White County News

Susan Goodrich never dreamed that a mosquito bite could endanger her child's life.

The Sautee resident admits she's a bit of a “hypochondriac” when it comes to protecting her family's health. They use hand sanitizers and they always get their flu shots.

So when her 6-year-old daughter, Summer, fell ill last month with a rare brain infection, it was as if Goodrich's worst nightmare had come true.

The ordeal began on July 26, when Summer complained of a severe headache. At first, Goodrich didn't think it was anything serious.But then her daughter began to show signs of neurological impairment. She was drooling and staring into space; she didn't respond to questions. Alarmed, Goodrich called 911. By the time paramedics arrived, Summer had begun vomiting. The child was taken by ambulance to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville, where a spinal tap showed an unusual number of white blood cells. Doctors decided to transfer Summer by helicopter to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston.By then, the little girl's breathing had become shallow. She was placed in intensive care, on a ventilator and under sedation.

It didn't take doctors long to figure out that Summer had encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain. What they didn't know was what type of encephalitis she had; it would take two weeks for the lab results to come back.

For treatment purposes, the exact diagnosis didn't really matter. Since the illness is caused by a virus, all the doctors could do was try to treat the symptoms and wait for the disease to run its course. To her parents' great relief, Summer did begin to improve. She was taken off the ventilator after two days, and by the end of the week she was ready to go home from the hospital. When Goodrich finally got the test results, she was shocked. Her daughter had La Crosse encephalitis, a disease she had never heard of.

First identified in Wisconsin in 1963, La Crosse encephalitis is usually transmitted by the treehole mosquito, a species typically found in woodland habitats.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only about 70 cases of La Crosse are reported in the U.S. each year. But health officials believe the disease is significantly under-reported.

“A lot of the time, it's a mild illness,” said Dave Palmer, spokesman for the Georgia Division of Public Health's District 2, which includes White County.

“People just don't feel well, but they never go to a doctor.”

La Crosse is usually diagnosed only when a patient is sick enough to be hospitalized.

So far this year, there have been only two reported cases of La Crosse in Georgia. Both were in District 2. Summer Goodrich was one; the other case was in Rabun County.

But just because it's rare doesn't mean it can't happen. “I want people to know that this disease is in the area,” said Susan Goodrich. “And that there are other mosquito-borne viruses besides West Nile.”

West Nile virus gets all the publicity because it just emerged in the U.S. over the past decade. Like La Crosse, it's an arbovirus, transmitted by mosquitoes. And though both diseases have a high rate of survival, in some cases they can be deadly.

“The arboviruses can be pretty dangerous,” said Palmer. “We need to continue to try to limit our exposure to mosquitoes.”

One difference between the two diseases is that in West Nile, most of the fatalities occur in elderly people. With La Crosse, the victims are more likely to be children.

In the worst cases, La Crosse can lead to seizures, coma, and death.

Children who survive may be left with neurological problems such as learning disabilities.

Though Summer has to stay on anti-seizure medication for a month, her mother says she is otherwise normal.

“I went over all the things she's

learned (in school), and she doesn't

seem to have forgotten aShe tries to spray her daughter with insect repellent whenever they go outside. But it's a challenge to avoid mosquitoes, because they live in a wooded area.

Rosmarie Kelly, public health entomologist for the Georgia Department of Community Health, said good mosquito control can help protect against both West Nile and La Crosse.

“Clean up containers (filled with standing water),” she said.

“Especially, keep tires disposed of properly. And wear repellent.

Wear repellent.”

Last Updated: Thursday, August 20, 2009

For More Mosquito Info visit: www.MosquitoControlAtlanta.com

Copyright © 2009 The White County News