Most people who are infected with West Nile Virus will not develop symptoms. If you do experience symptoms they will usually appear 3 to 15 days after exposure. Evidence suggests that a minority of infected persons will develop a mild case with fever, headache, body aches, and sometimes skin rash and swollen glands. There are no known long term effects due to mild cases. Sometimes West Nile Virus infection results in a severe disease known as West Nile encephalitis. Encephalitis is an inflammation of the brain that may be marked by headache, rapid onset of a high fever, neck stiffness, stupor (a state of decreased feeling), disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, and paralysis. A small number of cases have been fatal. If you feel that you have any of these symptoms, contact your doctor.