Scott McPherson's Web Presence

Nebraska is a great state.  I love it dearly, and not just because my boy played college football for the Huskers for a season.  OK, well, that has a lot to do with it.  I just love the people and their excellent attitude. Go Big Red!

So I hope they are coping well with two news stories, the double-whammy of which elevates the Cornhusker state as a kind of Ground Zero for infectious disease -- for fifteen minutes, anyway.  First, the Lincoln Journal-Star is reporting the banning of Nebraska-raised poultry, following the discovery of H7N9 avian influenza on a turkey farm in Seward County. 

Apparently the mild strain was discovered in June, and things didn't hit the fan until the FAO and OIE were dutifully notified of the findings.  Then Russia, Japan and the Philippines, in succession, banned Nebraska poultry. 

Nebraska's Deputy State Veterinarian Del Wilmot says that migratory wildfowl brought the disease in.  The farm in question remains unnamed.  The Journal-Star's story link is below.

http://www.journalstar.com/articles/2007/08/08/news/local/doc46b900ad7f2fe001280419.txt

The next story revolves around West Nile Virus.  Again, the Lincoln Journal-Star is reporting that a Seward County man has tested positive for West Nile, bringing the state total for 2007 to 14.  I'll bet Seward County hasn't had this much excitement since its namesake bought Alaska from the Russkies.  A Knox County man also tested positive for WNV.  Last year, some 264 Nebraskans tested positive, making their state fifth overall on the list of states with documented human cases of WNV (Idaho led the list with 996).  Now Nebraskans normally will take a Top Five ranking gladly, but not when it comes to life-threatening, mosquito-driven disease.

Since West Nile cases since 2002 have climed at a rate making us wish it were the stock market, we can assume that Nebraska has not lost WNV cases, but instead, people are not being tested for the disease.  And since Nebraska had 264 cases in 2006, and Florida only reported three human cases, what case is made for surveillance in the south and east?  If you look at the maps below, reported cases of WNV east of the Mississippi (with the exception of Illinois and Mississippi itself) are virtually non-existent. And 2007's numbers are dramatically less than 2006's, and it will take veritable epidemics of WNV to surpass 2006's totals in most states.  This doesn't exactly square with global warming, summer rainstorms and all.

By the way, Seward is only 20 miles from the capital, Lincoln.  It is a beautiful area, with rolling hills and much farmland.  Very nice to drive through.

http://www.journalstar.com/articles/2007/08/01/news/local/doc46b0c427c5afb874871248.txt

The 2006 and 2007 reported West Nile Virus official CDC maps follow.  Any explanation for the reduction in reported cases would be greatly appreciated.