CNN —
Dr. Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, is recuperating at home after being hospitalized with West Nile virus, a spokesman said.
Fauci, a longtime public health official who rose to prominence as part of the White House coronavirus task force, is expected to make a full recovery, a spokesman said.
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Each year, about 1,000 Americans are hospitalized with the most severe form of West Nile virus, which is spread by the bite of infected mosquitoes, and an average of another 1,500 are diagnosed after showing symptoms, although experts estimate that 80 percent of infections in the U.S. go unidentified.
There is no vaccine or specific treatment for West Nile virus. Most cases are mild, causing flu-like symptoms and a rash. In about 1 in 150 cases, the virus can invade the brain or nervous system, causing brain swelling, brain damage, or death. About 100 people die from West Nile virus infection in the United States each year.
The virus is usually most active in August and September. As of August 20, 216 cases have been reported in 33 states this year, including 142 neuroinvasive cases, according to preliminary data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
