Two people have died and eight others have been infected with the West Nile virus in Italy so far this year, the Health Ministry said Wednesday.
The virus, primarily transmitted to humans through mosquito bites, can cause severe or life-threatening illness in about one in 150 cases, according to the World Health Organization.
Italy first detected the virus in 1998, the ministry said.
A cluster of infections has resulted in seven cases in the Lazio region, which includes Rome, since the beginning of the year, the ministry said in a report on its website.
Italian media reported Sunday that an 82-year-old woman died at a hospital in the province of Latina, south of Rome, after being infected.
The virus has also been detected in the northern regions of Emilia-Romagna, Veneto, Piedmont and Lombardy, as well as on the island of Sardinia and in the southeastern Puglia region.
The West Nile virus is becoming more common in Europe and was found in May for the first time in mosquitoes collected in Britain.
In the U.S., it caused about 2,500 cases and 182 deaths in 2023, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
