Betsy Arakawa, wife of Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman, died from a respiratory illness linked to hantavirus. It is a rare disease transmitted by infected rodents.
What it is
Health experts warn that hantavirus can cause flu-like symptoms after exposure to rodent droppings. However, in severe cases, it may develop into Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS), a life-threatening lung condition. The fatality rate for those with respiratory complications is approximately 38%.
Hantavirus refers to a strain of viruses carried by rodents and often transmitted to humans by inhaling particles from dried mice droppings.
Infections are typically caught by inhaling the virus once it becomes airborne from a rodent’s urine, droppings or saliva, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
It can also spread through a rodent’s bite or scratch, but it is rarer. Deer mice are the most common carriers in North America, according to the Mayo Clinic.
The virus can cause two syndromes- the first, Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome is the most common in the US, and this is what Ms Arakawa caught, according to officials.
Symptoms
Symptoms can initially include fatigue, fever and muscle aches and can also cause headaches, dizziness, chills and abdominal problems.
The second – Haemorrhagic Fever with Renal syndrome – is more severe and affects the kidneys.
The CDC reported 864 cases of hantavirus in the US between 1993 and 2022.
Most of the cases were found in rural areas of western states like California, Washington, Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado.
Source: BBC News©
Photo credit: © Getty Images
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