90-Second Read: Five things to know about Hantavirus from a Stanford Medicine expert

Hantavirus is rare and unable to cause a global pandemic, said Jorge Salinas, MD, the medical director of infection prevention at Stanford Health Care. We asked him what people need to know about Hantavirus. In one recent study, about 3% of deer mice and white-footed mice across the United States tested positive for Hantavirus, with geographic hotspots in Virginia, Colorado and Texas. A cluster of Hantavirus cases, usually spread only by wild rodents, was diagnosed on a trans-Atlantic cruise ship. As of May 8, the World Health Organization has confirmed eight cases and three deaths among the passengers and crew of the MV Hondius, which left Argentina in April.

The outbreak comes roughly a year after Hantavirus was in the news for killing Betsy Arakawa, wife of actor Gene Hackman. In the last 30 years, the CDC has logged 890 cases of Hantavirus disease in humans, with 94% of cases west of the Mississippi and most occurring in Colorado, Arizona or New Mexico. Like the most severe COVID-19 cases, deaths from Hantavirus may be due to an overactive immune response. Hantavirus is a zoonotic infection, meaning it originates in animals but can cause disease in humans. Salinas was quick to point out that even in these high-risk states, house mice, the species you might see scurrying around a suburban garage or attic, are not the usual carriers of Hantavirus.

Together, the two stories underscore that while Hantavirus remains rare, it is not confined to remote jungles. Hantavirus has been detected in more than 100 species of mammals, including foxes and bats, but is primarily found in wild rodents, which can have persistent Hantavirus infections without symptoms. In 2018, the Andes strain of Hantavirus spread throughout a small village in Argentina. But Hantavirus, even the Andes strain, is not efficient at spreading between people. No, I wouldn't be worried," said Jorge Salinas, MD, the medical director of infection prevention at Stanford Health Care.

Rare as it is, Hantavirus is not something to take lightly; its fatality rate is much higher than more common viruses such as influenza and COVID-19. Early symptoms of Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, including fever, fatigue and muscle aches, show up anywhere from 4 to 42 days after exposure and might be mistaken for the flu. The Andes virus, found in South America, is different; it is the only Hantavirus documented to occasionally transmit between people. The list of diseases that have jumped from animals to humans, including Hantavirus, Ebola, avian influenza and COVID-19, grows longer every year. That means investing in surveillance, in research, in understanding how these viruses move through animal populations before they reach us." "No, I wouldn't be worried," said Jorge Salinas, MD, the medical director of.