Fears of deadly virus in north
A 79-year-old man suffering from a slew of other health problems died in a Thessaloniki hospital yesterday while being treated for symptoms that may have been caused by the West Nile virus, a form of encephalitis that can be contracted from mosquito bites, the Infectious Diseases Hospital of Thessaloniki announced yesterday. His death comes after reports that two women, both aged over 75, had died of a similar disease on Friday, though authorities at the hospital denied this was the case, refuting rumors of an outbreak of West Nile virus in northern Greece. The Ministry of Health announced on Saturday that it would be monitoring all cases of related diseases reported by hospitals in the region, and advised residents to take precautionary measures against mosquito bites.
