Once-energetic dad can barely talk or move month after testing positive for West Nile Virus

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A west Houston man has been unable to talk or move for over a month.

His family told ABC13 it's all because he got West Nile Virus, and now they want to make sure others understand the dangers.

John Hudson had always been an energetic family man.

But, on July 27, his family found him disoriented in his truck.

"He was semi-conscious, semi-aware. He didn't know how to start the truck. He didn't know how to open his phone and answer a call. Didn't know your basic information, where he was," his son, Nicholas Hawkins, said. "They called an ambulance, they took him to the hospital, and next thing you know, he's in the ICU."

Hawkins said his 73-year-old father tested positive for West Nile.

One month later, he's still in a hospital bed.

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"He cannot speak. He can move his toes a little bit, make some minor facial gestures, move his fingers a little bit, and that's about it," he said. "He has a machine that is still helping him breathe."

According to Texas Health and Human Services, there have been two deaths and 39 West Nile cases in our state so far this year.

Eighteen of those cases caused fevers, and 21 of them led to neurological symptoms.

It's important to remember, though, that symptoms are usually mild or nonexistent.

About 80% of people who get West Nile have no symptoms at all, so they never get treated for it and aren't included in these statistics.

"A couple of days leading up to it, he just thought he had a common cold. He didn't feel great, but he just kind of shrugged it off," Hawkins said. "Next thing you know, he's in the hospital and can't speak. It weighs on you. It hurts to see somebody you care so much about such a bad condition in the hospital."

Houston is right in the peak of mosquito season, and according to the CDC, West Nile is the leading cause of mosquito-borne disease in the United States.

No vaccine is currently available, so the best you can do is avoid mosquitos.

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