What do I need to know before I travel?
Public Health Scotland logo

Fit for Travel Logo

Information on how to stay safe and healthy abroad. About us.

West Nile Virus in France

24 Oct 2017

The Regional Health Agency Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur has reported (in French) that a person carrying the West Nile virus was diagnosed on 20 October in the Alpes-Maritimes department in Nice. This is the first human case reported in France since 2015.

Advice for Travellers

There is no vaccine against WNV.

Travellers should practice Mosquito Bite Avoidance when visiting areas experiencing an outbreak of WNV.  These outbreaks will be listed on the destination pages of fitfortravel. Medical advice can be sought if symptoms develop following travel to a risk area.
Note for blood donors: If you have travelled to an area with WNV in the past 4 months you may need to be tested for WNV before donating blood. All travel must be mentioned to the Blood Transfusion Service so that they can determine whether you need to be tested. The Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service have produced a leaflet which details information about blood donation after travel:

For further information see West Nile Fever.