Gene Hackman’s spouse, Betsy Arakawa, died from hantavirus an infection, officers in New Mexico introduced Friday.
Hantavirus, discovered all through the world, is unfold by contact with rodents or their urine or feces. It doesn’t unfold between folks. There isn’t any particular remedy or treatment, however early medical consideration can improve the prospect of survival.
An an infection can quickly progress and turn out to be life-threatening.
“It actually begins just like the flu: physique aches, feeling poorly total,” mentioned Dr. Sonja Bartolome of UT Southwestern Medical Heart in Dallas. “Early within the sickness, you actually might not have the ability to inform the distinction between hantavirus and having the flu.”
The virus may cause a extreme and typically lethal lung an infection referred to as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, in accordance with the U.S. Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention. The company started monitoring the virus after a 1993 outbreak within the 4 Corners area — the realm the place Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah meet.
It was an astute doctor with the Indian Well being Service who first seen a sample of deaths amongst younger sufferers, mentioned Dr. Michelle Harkins, a pulmonologist with the College of New Mexico Well being Sciences Heart who for years has been finding out the illness and serving to sufferers.
“They have been wholesome, they’d no medical issues and so they have been coming in with a cardiopulmonary arrest,” she mentioned, prompting the CDC’s involvement as consultants labored to find out what the sufferers had in widespread.
The vast majority of U.S. instances since then have been in western states, particularly the southwest. Between 1993 and 2022, there have been 864 reported U.S. instances. New Mexico had the best quantity over that point, at 122, adopted by Colorado at 119.
There have been seven instances confirmed in 2023 and one other seven in 2024, in accordance with the New Mexico Division of Well being. As for deaths, the state has reported 52 between 1975 and 2023.
The CDC has supplied to check samples concerned in Arakawa’s case to be taught extra concerning the pressure of virus that contaminated her and to carry out pathology testing.
Signs begin one to eight weeks after publicity and initially can embody fatigue, fever and muscle aches, in accordance with the CDC. Because the illness progresses, signs can embody coughing, shortness of breath and tightness within the chest because the lungs fill with fluid. A few third of people that develop respiratory signs from the illness can die, the CDC says.
Regardless of years of analysis, Harkins mentioned many questions have but to be answered, together with why it may be delicate for some folks and really extreme for others and the way antibodies are developed. She and different researchers have been following sufferers over lengthy durations of time in hopes of discovering a remedy.
“Lots of mysteries,” she mentioned, noting that what researchers do know is that mouse publicity is a key.
One of the simplest ways to keep away from the germ is to attenuate contact with rodents and their droppings. Use protecting gloves and a bleach answer for cleansing up rodent droppings. Public well being consultants warning in opposition to sweeping or vacuuming which may trigger virus to get into the air.
—Related Press writers Michael Stobbe and Susan Montoya Bryan contributed to this report.
