What is the Hantavirus, a rare disease that killed Betsie Arakawa?

Jean Hackman's wife, Betsy Arakawa, died of the effects of the Hantavirus, a rare disease that is often caused by contact with feces from infected rodents.

The hantavirus does not spread among people in the incidents found in the United States. It can be transmitted through rodent saliva. However, it is most commonly transmitted by breathing dung deer mice's feces or urine particles.

Initially, the hantavirus causes thin symptoms such as fever, chills, body pain, and headaches. However, as the disease progresses, respiratory symptoms develop, and the patient experiences shortness of breath, and then lung or heart failure.

This is what you need to know about the hantavirus.

What is Hantavirus?

Hantaviruses refer to a family of viruses carried by rodents. It is often transmitted to humans by inhaling particles from the feces of dried mice. In North America, the Sinn Non-Bel virus is the most common form of this virus, said Sabla L. Klein, a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

As of the end of 2022, 864 cases of hantavirus disease had been reported in the United States since the survey of such cases began in 1993, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The “classic” incident of the hantavirus is contracted by people visiting a country shed where rodent invasions are located, said Emily Abdlow, a medical professor at the University of Michigan School of Medicine.

Hantavirus has a volatile initial condition.

According to Dr. Heather Jarrell, Chief Medical Examiner in New Mexico, the hantavirus can cause clear symptoms that appear to appear eight to eight weeks after exposure to feces from infected rodents. The patient often experiences shortness of breath, then lung or heart failure.

The death rate from hantavirus strains in the southwestern United States is between 38 and 50%, Dr. Jarrell said. Tensions in the area cannot be communicated from person to person, she said.

New Mexico is not a stranger to the Hantavirus.

In the United States, hantavirus is most commonly found in Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico, according to Dr. Abdore.

New Mexico has recorded 1 to 7 hantavirus cases each year over the past five years, according to Dr. Erin Phipps, a veterinarian at the New Mexico Department of Health.

Most people are infected at home and at work, she said. On the east site of Santa Fe, where Hackman and Arakawa lived, health officials found signs of rodent invasion in some structures, but there was little risk of exposure to the virus in major settlements.

It is not clear when Arakawa began to feel sick, Dr. Jarrell said.

How can I prevent the hantavirus?

There are antiviral agents that help manage symptoms, but there is no cure for the hantavirus, said Klein of Johns Hopkins. Therefore, prevention is important.

If you live in an area where hantavirus-infected rodents are known to roam, clean your feces with wet paper towels. Do not use vacuums or brooms that can stir aerosols from excrement.

Use a well-ventilated space with the n95 mask that fits perfectly with gloves. People should spray the area with a bleach solution or commercial disinfectant and leave it for 5 minutes. They then need to clean the area with paper towels and throw them in the trash can, which closes tightly, Dr. Phipps said.

Treatment of hantaviruses in intensive care units may include intubation and oxygen therapy, liquid replacement therapy, and drugs that support blood pressure. Sometimes antiviral drugs are used.