West Nile virus ... West Nile virus (WNV) is spread by mosquitoes in many countries (but not in the UK). There are usually no symptoms and it gets better without ...SkiptomaincontentHomeHealthAtoZBacktoHealthAtoZWestNilevirusWestNilevirus(WNV)isspreadbymosquitoesinmanycountries(butnotintheUK).Thereareusuallynosymptomsanditgetsbetterwithouttreatment.WestNilevirusrarelyaffectsUKtravellersVeryfewpeoplecomingbacktotheUKhavethevirus.NoonehasgottheviruswhileintheUK.Youcanchecktheareayou'retravellingtoontheTravelHealthProwebsite.Visitinghigh-riskareasforWNVThere'snovaccineforWNV.Youshouldavoidmosquitobiteswhenvisitinghigh-riskareasbyusinginsectspraysandmosquitonets.SymptomsofWNVMostpeoplewithWNVhavenosymptoms.Somepeopledevelopmildflu-likesymptoms,askinrashandmayfeelsick.Theinfectionusuallygoesawayonitsownwithouttreatment.Thevirusisnotcontagious.Youonlygetitfrombeingbittenbyaninfectedmosquito.Peopleagedover50orwithanothercondition,suchascancer,diabetesorhypertension,aremoreatriskofgettingseriouslyill.Signsofasevereinfectioncanincludeflu-likesymptomsandalso:muscleweaknessconfusionfits(seizures)SevereWNVinfectionsaretreatedinhospital.Inrarecases,itcanleadtomeningitisandencephalitis.Non-urgentadvice:Getmedicaladviceif:youdevelopsymptomsofWNVwhileyou'retravellingCheckyourtravelinsuranceforhowtogetmedicalhelpwhileyou'reawayorlookupthecountryyou'revisitingonGOV.UK.SeeaGPifyounoticesymptomswhenyougethomemakesureyousaywhereyou'vebeentravellingInformation:Coronavirus(COVID-19)update:howtocontactaGPIt'sstillimportanttogethelpfromaGPifyouneedit.TocontactyourGPsurgery:visittheirwebsiteusetheNHSAppcallthemFindoutaboutusingtheNHSduringCOVID-19Pagelastreviewed:23November2020Nextreviewdue:23November2023