Cambridge, Ont. man hospitalized after contracting West Nile virus

CTV’s Krista Simpson speaks with a Cambridge, Ont. man who contracted West Nile virus.

A Cambridge, Ont. resident is sharing his experience with West Nile virus, as a reminder that it’s important to take precautions against mosquito bites.

René van den Berg believes his ordeal began in his backyard, a place where he often spends time.

“I guess I got bitten by a mosquito doing lawn work,” he told CTV News.

Around Sept. 20, van den Berg developed headaches that after a few days became so painful, he went to the hospital.

After tests that included a CT scan, lumbar puncture, MRI and multiple rounds of blood work, he was ultimately diagnosed with viral meningitis as a result of West Nile virus.

West Nile virus is transmitted through mosquitoes. On Friday, Region of Waterloo Public Health confirmed it had its first human case of the virus since 2024. A second case has also been identified this week.

“As we experienced the very hot summer with continued warm temperatures into September, this has extended the life cycle of mosquitoes in our region,” Bernadette Moussa, acting manager in the division of Health Protection and Healthy Environments at Region of Waterloo Public Health, said.

Public Health is issuing a reminder that people should take precautions and try to avoid mosquito bites. Those include using repellents and covering up by wearing long sleeves, pants and a hat.

“We also recommend that residents eliminate mosquito breeding grounds: not to allow outdoor objects to collect water, cover your rain barrels with a fine mesh screen, change the water in bird baths at least once a week,” Moussa said.

For van den Berg, who doesn’t have standing water in his backyard, contracting the virus in mid-September was unexpected.

“I thought mosquitoes would die off at the end of August, when temperatures get colder at night.”

Van den Berg ended up spending 11 days in Cambridge Memorial Hospital. He’s now at home and recovering.

About 75 to 80 per cent of people who contract West Nile virus don’t have any symptoms.

For those that do develop symptoms, they show up two to 15 days following a bite from an infected mosquito.

“Those who do have symptoms most typically have a mild febrile illness that can last for a few days,” Dr. Isaac Bogoch, infectious diseases specialist at Toronto General Hospital, said. “Mild, meaning it’s not usually severe enough to bring people into hospital, but people can feel pretty crummy for a couple of days. Fatigue, fever, muscle aches and pains, and it just resolves on its own.”

But Dr. Bogoch said one to two per cent of people can experience neuroinvasive disease that can be serious, including meningitis, encephalitis or a paralysis-like condition similar to polio.

There is no vaccination against the virus, so prevention is key, Bogoch said.

“Make sure that people are aware that it’s circulating at certain times of the year and then taking steps to avoid and prevent mosquito bites to prevent transmission of this infection.”

Van den Berg said his story is a reminder to take those easy, precautionary steps.

“Wear mosquito repellent, long sleeves if there’s mosquitoes around. Just try to prevent [a bite].”

Van den Berg added, “One per cent is not as little as you think it is.”