The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) stated that the West Nile virus has been detected in mosquitoes gathered in the U.K. for the first time.
The virus, which rapidly spreads to individuals through mosquito bites, can lead to severe complications. It has already infected up to 150 people, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said.
The virus is transmitted to mosquitoes from birds they bite, and in rare cases, can pass it on to humans or horses.
The West Nile virus has been detected in mosquitoes in the UK forr the first time.
It is important to note that no cases of local transmission to humans have been reported in Britain up till now.
The UKHSA analysed the risk to the general public as "very low".
Precautionary measures taken to avoid the risk of West Nile virus
However, as a precautionary measure, the UKHSA has recommended that healthcare professionals allow them to test patients with encephalitis (swelling of the brain) of an unknown cause for the West Nile virus.
Dr Arran Folly, leading the project which detected the virus, stated that finding it in Britain was "part of a wider changing landscape, where, in the wake of climate change, mosquito-borne diseases are expanding to new areas."
The UKHSA has highlighted a significant risk of contracting West Nile virus for UK residents travelling to endemic areas, including Europe, Africa, the Middle East, West and Central Asia, North and South America, Australia and the US.
