Why Massachusetts Residents Shouldn’t Panic About Hantavirus

If you have been near a television screen or social media in recent days, there is a good chance you've seen the media hysteria, with men in hazmat suits and the like, over cruise passengers and hantavirus.

There is no need to panic. It's the media, right?

There are no murder hornets, killer bees, Ebola germs, or COVID-19 lab rats involved here. There is no need to re-mask, isolate, work from home, shelter in place, or vaccinate.

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What Is Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome?

The Massachusetts Department of Health & Social Services' Disease Control & Prevention division says, "Hantavirus is a type of virus (germ) found in some rodents. Some hantaviruses can cause a rare but deadly disease in people called hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS)."

HPS is rare. Between 1993 and 2022, only 587 cases of HPS were reported in the United States, and "the majority of those cases were identified in the Southwest, from the states of New Mexico, California, Arizona, and Colorado."

Has Hantavirus Ever Been Found in Massachusetts?

There is no record of an HPS case being acquired in Massachusetts. Ever.

Hantavirus is carried by rodents, especially mice, and is spread by coming in contact with their poop, urine, and saliva.

How Does Hantavirus Manifest?

State health officials say HPS symptoms "begin with flu-like symptoms," including "high fever, muscle aches, cough, and headache." Then your lungs fill with fluid. Most symptoms develop within two weeks of being exposed.

Dr. Zoe Weiss, director of microbiology at Tufts Medical Center, explained to Boston 25 News that while human-to-human transmission of HPS is possible, it requires very close contact with an infected person's secretions.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says there is no specific treatment for HPS, and no vaccine to protect against hantavirus.