West Nile Virus: an Update on Recent Developments

West Nile Virus arrived in North America just over 12 years ago, and since that time, much has been learned about its pathology and transmission of infection and the factors affecting prevalence. Key developments uncovered critical risk factors for severe neurologic disease and revealed successful host defense strategies. At present, only equine vaccines are available; human vaccines remain in various stages of clinical trials. This review discusses the advances in and limitations of the current research related to the emergence and continued dissemination of West Nile virus throughout the Americas.