BATON ROUGE — The Louisiana Department of Health said Wednesday that the state's first human case of West Nile Virus was reported in Livingston Parish during the 2025 mosquito season.

The infected person was hospitalized due to complications from the infection. LDH said that no further information about the patient would be released.

LDH said that one in 150 people who are infected with WNV develop a severe illness that can affect the brain, spinal cord and nerves, which may even cause paralysis or death.

According to LDH officials, the virus has been actively spreading throughout Louisiana since its first detection in the state in 2002. To date in 2025, WNV activity has been confirmed in 14 parishes.

In 2024, there were 57 confirmed human cases of the virus in Louisiana, including three deaths. 

West Nile Virus is spread to people by mosquitoes and can cause mild to severe illnesses, LDH said. While most people infected with West Nile Virus develop no symptoms, about 20 percent of infected people develop West Nile fever.