90-Second Read: New Mexico's Hantavirus Strain is Different From Cruise Ship Outbreak and Does Not Spread Between People

SANTA FE, As news coverage of a Hantavirus outbreak linked to a cruise ship raises questions, New Mexico health officials want residents to know: the Hantavirus strain found in New Mexico is different from the one causing illness abroad and cannot spread from person to person. New Mexico's strain -Sin Nombre Hantavirus-is transmitted through contact with infected rodents, such as when droppings or nests are disturbed and virus particles become airborne. Ever since 1993, when a deadly disease outbreak in the Four Corners first revealed the presence of Hantavirus in North America, New Mexicans have been warned to be on the lookout for deer mice, which harbor the microbe and can spread it through their droppings. The cruise ship infections are caused by Andes Hantavirus found in Argentina and Chile.

There are many different strains of Hantavirus, with about half known to infect humans. Andes Hantavirus is notable as the only type of Hantavirus that can spread person-to-person, but it does not spread easily and requires close contact. A few human cases, usually presenting with severe cardiopulmonary symptoms, typically occur in New Mexico each year, almost all in the northwestern quadrant of the state, and even with advanced treatment about 35 percent of patients die.

Erin Phipps, New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) state public health veterinarian. But now, University of New Mexico researchers have found that more than 30 species of rodent and other small mammals endemic to the Southwest actually carry the virus, including ground squirrels, chipmunks, gophers, rats and even house mice.