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HAMILTON -- The first human to die in Ohio this year from the West Nile virus is a Butler County man.
The victim, an 80-year-old man who was the first case reported in the state this year, died this month, the Ohio Department of Health reported Monday.
State health department officials could not be reached Monday night for more details about the man's death.
In September of last year, the first "probable" case of human West Nile virus in the county was reported.
The virus, which spreads to humans by infected mosquitoes, caused eight human deaths, as well as 108 probable and confirmed human infections last year in Ohio, according to the state health department's Web site.
Ohio had 31 deaths in the 441 human cases reported in 2002, according to the state's Web site. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 182 human cases of West Nile in 12 states as of July 20.
However, the CDC's Web site was not updated with the recent Ohio case. The majority of the cases -- 125 -- were in Arizona. Four deaths were reported in three states -- Arizona, Iowa and Texas.
The virus usually flares up during the summer and continues into the fall.
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