West Nile Virus Surveillance Report

Week 39: Sep 26 - Oct 02, 2021

Purpose: This report serves as the official statement of West Nile virus activity in humans, mosquitoes,
and birds within the jurisdiction of the Cook County Department of Public Health. All data are preliminary
and may change as more reports are received.
Risk Assessment: The risk of human West Nile virus infection is decreasing.
Prevention: When outdoors between dusk and dawn, cover skin with lightly colored loose fitting clothing
and use mosquito repellent with DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus. When applying repellent, al-
ways follow the directions on the product label. Get rid of standing water around your home in pet bowls,
flower pots, old tires, baby pools and toys. Water that is allowed to stagnate for three or four days becomes a
breeding ground for mosquitoes. Make sure your doors and windows have tightly fitting screens and repair
any tears or other openings. Keep weeds and grass cut short and keep gutters clean and free of debris.

Mosquito1-3 Surveillance:

Weekly Summary Week 39

Number of mosquitoes tested 7861
Number of mosquito pools tested 333
Number of positive pools 80
Percent of pools testing positive 24%
Number of communities with positive pools 21

Year to Date Summary 3 Year Average 2021

Number of mosquitoes tested 252251 284742
Number of mosquito pools tested 6590 7470
Number of positive pools 1456 1878
Percent of pools testing positive 22.20% 25.1%
Number of communities with positive pools 68 69

Percent of Mosquito Pools Positive for West Nile Virus

2018 2019 2020 2021

% of Pools Positive for WNV

100

75

50

25

0
May−16
May−23
May−30

Sep−05
Sep−12
Sep−19
Sep−26
Aug−01
Aug−08
Aug−15
Aug−22
Aug−29
Jun−06
Jun−13
Jun−20
Jun−27

Oct−03
Oct−10
Jul−04
Jul−11
Jul−18
Jul−25

Week Start Date

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 West Nile Virus Surveillance Report
Week 39: Sep 26 - Oct 02, 2021

1. Includes mosquito surveillance data from Cook County Department of Public Health, Northwest
Mosquito Abatement District, North Shore Mosquito Abatement District, Desplaines Valley Mosquito
Abatement District, South Cook County Mosquito Abatement District, and the Illinois Department of
Public Health.
2. When mosquitoes are tested for West Nile virus, they are tested in groups, or “pools”, of up to 50
mosquitoes. Therefore when a mosquito pool tests positive, the number of WNV positive mosquitoes in that
pool is unknown. It is only known that at least one mosquito in the pool was positive.
3. Positive communities are listed on page 4.

Bird Surveillance:

Since June 1st, ten birds have been submitted for testing and nine have tested negative. Results are pending
for one bird.

Human Case Surveillance:

Since June 1st, fifteen cases of West Nile virus have been reported; eleven cases were neuroinvasive.

Percent of Pools WNV Positive

Percent Positive Pools Human Cases
No. of Human Cases

20 100
15 75
10 50
5 25
0 0
May−16
May−23
May−30

Sep−05
Sep−12
Sep−19
Sep−26
Aug−01
Aug−08
Aug−15
Aug−22
Aug−29
Jun−06
Jun−13
Jun−20
Jun−27

Oct−03
Oct−10
Jul−04
Jul−11
Jul−18
Jul−25

Week Start Date

2012 (Last Outbreak Year) 3 Year Average 2021

No. of Human Cases

20
15
10
5
0
May−16
May−23
May−30

Sep−05
Sep−12
Sep−19
Sep−26
Aug−01
Aug−08
Aug−15
Aug−22
Aug−29
Jun−06
Jun−13
Jun−20
Jun−27

Oct−03
Oct−10
Jul−04
Jul−11
Jul−18
Jul−25

Week Start Date

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 West Nile Virus Surveillance Report
Week 39: Sep 26 - Oct 02, 2021

The following map shows mosquito traps in suburban Cook County. The estimated infection rate4 is a
measurement of how much West Nile virus activity is occurring in mosquitoes caught by that trap. Higher
numbers means more mosquitoes capable of spreading West Nile virus.

Deerfield N
Palatine Buffalo Grove
Barrington Hills Northbrook
Palatine
Northfield
Arlington Heights
South Barrington Glenview Wilmette
Mount Prospect
Hoffman Estates Golf
Evanston
Elgin Des Plaines
Niles
Streamwood
Elk Grove Village Park Ridge
Lincolnwood
Bartlett
Rosemont

Schiller Park
Franklin Park
Northlake

Hillside
Estimated WNV Infection Rate
Oak Brook
> 25 infected mosquitos per 1000 Chicago
16−25 infected mosquitos per 1000 Brookfield
6−15 infected mosquitos per 1000
< 5 infected mosquitos per 1000 Mc Cook
Negative Indian Head Park
Not Tested Burr Ridge
Burbank
Willow Springs
Oak Lawn
Lemont
Merrionette Park
Lemont Lemont Calumet Park
Orland Park Chicago
Dixmoor Dolton
Orland Park Oak Forest
Orland Hills
Tinley Park
Lansing
Glenwood

Matteson Chicago Heights

Lynwood
0 2 4 6 8 10 mi
University Park Sauk Village

4. Estimated infection rate is calculated by dividing the number of positive mosquito pools by the total
number of mosquitoes tested and multiplying by 1000. This is also called the minimum infection rate
and is the most conservative estimate of West Nile virus activity in mosquitoes.
5. Reasons a trap might not be tested include battery or other equipment failure or no mosquitoes present
in the trap.

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 West Nile Virus Surveillance Report
Week 39: Sep 26 - Oct 02, 2021

The following towns had traps that were positive for West Nile virus this week: Alsip, Berkeley, Cicero,
County Club Hills, Elmwood Park, Evanston, Franklin Park, Glenview, Harwood Heights, Hoffman Estates,
Homewood, Melrose Park, Niles, Norridge, Northbrook, Oak Forest, Orland Park, Schiller Park, Skokie,
Tinley Park, Wilmette.
The following towns have had traps positive for West Nile virus at some point this season: Alsip, Arling-
ton Heights, Barrington, Bartlett, Berkeley, Berwyn, Broadview, Brookfield, Buffalo Grove, Calumet City,
Cicero, County Club Hills, Des Plaines, Elgin, Elk Grove Village, Elmwood Park, Evanston, Evergreen Park,
Flossmoor, Forest Park, Franklin Park, Glencoe, Glenview, Glenwood, Harwood Heights, Hickory Hills,
Hillside, Hodgkins, Hoffman Estates, Homewood, Justice, Kenilworth, La Grange, La Grange Highlands,
La Grange Park, Lansing, Lemont, Lincolnwood, Lynwood, Maywood, Melrose Park, Morton Grove, Niles,
Norridge, Northbrook, Northfield, Oak Forest, Oak Lawn, Oak Park, Olympia Fields, Orland Park, Palatine,
Palos Heights, Palos Park, Prospect Heights, Richton Park, River Forest, Rolling Meadows, Schaumburg,
Schiller Park, Skokie, South Chicago Heights, Streamwood, Summit, Tinley Park, Willow Springs, Wilmette,
Winnetka, Worth.
Not all towns have mosquito traps so West Nile virus activity may be unknown in your area. CCDPH recom-
mends all residents practice good West Nile virus prevention habits throughout the summer season.