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BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Louisiana's Department of Health and Hospitals says one newly reported case of West Nile virus and two additional deaths from the disease have been reported this week.
That brings the total number of cases to 55 and the number of deaths to four.
Thirty-four of the reported cases were dangerous infections of the brain or spinal cord, and seven were of flu-like West Nile fever. The remaining 14 did not have any symptoms and were discovered through blood tests.
Dr. Jimmy Guidry, the state health officer, reminded residents Thursday that even though the weather is getting cooler, they should continue to protect themselves against mosquito bites.
Protections include wearing long sleeves and pants outdoors, especially at dusk and dawn, and using insect repellant that includes DEET.
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