West Nile Virus in Immunocompromised Hosts

West Nile virus (WNV) is an emerging pathogen endemic in Africa and Europe. Recent events demonstrate the speed with which a vector-borne disease like WNV can disseminate when introduced into a susceptible, pathogen-naïve population, where competent reservoir and vectors are present. Since the arrival of WNV to the North American continent in 1999, it is estimated that 2–4 million people have been infected in the USA alone. It has special relevance to the immunocompromised host populations because of the possibility of WNV transmission through organ transplantation and the increased risk of neuroinvasive disease in immunocompromised patients. In this chapter a detailed discussion of WNV infection with a focus in transplant population is presented.

DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-9034-4_44