Separately, an elderly Luzerne County resident has died from the disease, Pennsylvania health officials say.
Lehigh County has recorded its second human case of West Nile virus this summer, the Pennsylvania West Nile Control Program announced today.Separately, an elderly northeastern Pennsylvania man who had contracted West Nile virus has died.
Department of Health spokeswoman Kait Gillis said officials received confirmation of the death of the Luzerne County resident today, but she isn't sure exactly when the victim died. She said he was more than 80 years old.
The commonwealth has recorded 12 human cases of the virus so far this year, an increase from a total of seven cases last year.
State data show seven of the 2012 cases are in males, five in females. The age range with the most cases is 40 to 59, with at least one case each in the groups of younger than 18, 18 to 39, 60 to 69, 70 to 79 and older than 80.
The previous human case in Lehigh County was announced Aug. 16. Northampton County has not seen a human case of the disease this year.
The health department says statewide sampling shows higher numbers of infected mosquitoes than in any summer since monitoring began a decade ago.
Older people and those with weakened immune systems are at greatest risk of severe illness including encephalitis from West Nile virus.
Residents are being urged to minimize exposure to mosquitoes.