By AP/KWMU
O'Fallon, MO – An eight year-old St. Charles County boy is the first confirmed Missourian to have the West Nile virus this year.
The child was hospitalized after becoming ill in early July, but is now recovering at home from the disease, caused by mosquito bites.
Health officials say there was no way to determine if the child contracted the disease in Missouri or in Arizona, where the family vacationed earlier this summer.
Arizona had reported 125 human cases of West Nile, most in the nation, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
However, St. Charles County health officials note that West Nile was also found in birds and mosquitoes in the O'Fallon area, where the boy lives.