Bristol County man is first infected with EEE this year

By Kay Lazar, Globe Staff

An elderly Bristol County man has been hospitalized with Eastern equine encephalitis, the first human case reported in Massachusetts this year, state health authorities announced this afternoon.

The man, who lives in Raynham, became ill on Saturday and was taken to the hospital Monday, officials said.

Also called EEE, the virus is spread to humans through the bite of an infected mosquito, and disease trackers recently issued health alerts for several towns in Bristol and Plymouth counties about the increased numbers of EEE-positive mosquitoes who typically bite humans.

“EEE is a devastating in all age groups, but especially in the elderly and very young,” said Dr. Alfred DeMaria, the state’s top disease tracker.

DeMaria said the man, whose identity has not been released, “is doing very poorly.”

He said 40 to 50 percent of EEE infections are fatal and “about 80 percent of people who survive have significant neurological problems.”

“Southeastern Massachusetts is an area that concerns us every year,” he added.

Joseph Pacheco, chair of Raynham’s Board of Selectmen and Board of Health, said town officials received a call from the state this afternoon alerting them that an elderly male resident had been infected. He said state officials did not identify the resident.

“Every year we have asked the state to do aerial spraying and they have been resistant to that,“ Pacheco said. “Again this year we asked for aerial spraying and that hasn’t been done yet, but I hope that now it will be done.”

State officials did conduct aerial spraying across a broad swath of Southeastern Massachusetts, including Raynham, last year in August after unusually high levels of EEE were detected in the mosquito population.

Pacheco said Bristol County authorities did conduct ground-based spraying of several areas in Raynham last night.

There was one case of EEE in a Massachusetts resident in 2010, as well as in a Rhode Island resident who was probably exposed to the virus in Massachusetts, officials said.

Mosquitoes will be biting and potentially transmitting more infections until the first frost, officials said.

“It doesn’t capture a lot of attention until and unless there is a tragic situation like this that gets poeple’s attention, especially with this long weekend,” said DeMaria.

He said health officials are especially concerned because many people in Southeastern Massachusetts, which was hard hit by last weekend’s tropical storm, Irene, will be out cleaning up their yards and neighborhoods from the damage.

“We are very worried that people get distracted with school and work, and other things, and you sort of think mosquitoes aren’t around anymore,” DeMaria said.

Residents can take several steps to protect themselves.

Among those steps: consider rescheduling outdoor activities to times when mosquitoes are less likely to be biting. Peak danger times are between dusk and dawn. Wearing long-sleeves, long pants, and socks when outdoors will help keep mosquitoes away from your skin. And apply insect repellent when outdoors.

More information about EEE and West Nile virus, another mosquito-borne disease, can be found on the state Department of Public Health’s website.

Kay Lazar can be reached at klazar@globe.com