Evergreen Park Mayor and West Nile Virus Survivor Leads Prevention Campaign

Caption: Mayor Jim Sexton at his first night back to lead the Evergreen Park Village Board in January 2013.

He was perhaps the highest profile West Nile virus patient in the Chicago-area during the hot, dry summer of 2012, when human cases of the mosquito-borne virus were being reported in record numbers throughout Cook County.

Today, Evergreen Park Mayor Jim Sexton has lived to tell the tale of how he survived West Nile virus that left him lying three weeks in the intensive care unit at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn.

Sexton is leading a West Nile virus prevention campaign for the Cook County Department of Public Health launched this week. A short video with his story and prevention message will be shown in suburban Cook County movie theaters through the end of September.

“Mayor Sexton and his family generously shared their time and their story of his experience with

West Nile virus and the importance of prevention,” said CCDPH COO Dr. Terry Mason in a news advisory. “Thankfully, this year we have yet to see a human case of West Nile in suburban Cook County.”

Watch Mayor Sexton’s video.

Sexton barely remembers his three weeks in the ICU with a swelling brain. The virus left him with no voice and no use of his right hand. He couldn’t hold up his head. The Evergreen Park mayor then spent five weeks re-learning simple skills like how to get out of bed. Physical therapy intensified at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.

When Sexton and his doctors were certain he was on the road to recovery, he promised his grandchildren that September he would walk with them, house to house on Halloween. He accomplished his goal.

Sexton was also well enough to campaign and was reelected to his third mayoral term last year.

On Aug. 27, the Cook County Department of Public Health announced the first human case of West Nile virus reported in the southwest suburbs, identified as a woman in her 40s recovering at home in Oak Lawn. Three dead birds and 58 mosquito pools in 58 communities in suburban Cook County have tested positive for WNV.

“The risk for human transmission is starting to increase so it is the right time to share the mayor’s prevention message,” Dr. Mason said.

Two years later, Sexton’s recovery is 90 percent, but he’s still fighting to make it 100 percent. He can walk, speak, and use his right hand again. His neck is stronger although his head still tilts somewhat.

“Take it from me, you don’t want to get West Nile virus,” the Evergreen Park mayor says in the video.

West Nile Virus Prevention Tips

The most effective way to prevent against becoming infected with WNV is to follow the 3 R’s:

• Remove standing water around your home

• Repel mosquitoes by applying insect repellent with DEET

• Repair or replace torn screens on doors and windows

Most people infected with WNV have no symptoms of illness and never become ill. But illness can occur 3-15 days after an infected mosquito bite and cause symptoms of fever, headache and body aches. People over the age of 50 are at a higher risk for serious complications from encephalitis or meningitis. For that reason, people who experience high fever, confusion, muscle weakness, severe headaches, or a stiff neck should see a doctor immediately.

For continued updates about West Nile virus please follow the Cook County Department of Public Health on Twitter: @Cookcohealth and like them on Facebook.

Source: Cook County Department of Public Health