Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome
Hantavirus is one of the four genera of the family Bunyaviridae. Hantaviruses are spread by rodents and target the
kidneys, lungs or pulmonary system, and heart. The Hantavirus name is ultimately derived from the Hantaan river, where the Hantaan virus (the etiologic agent
of Korean hemorrhagic fever) was first isolated. The disease associated with Hantaan virus is called Korean hemorrhagic
fever or hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS).
Hantaviruses are a relatively newly discovered class of virus; the disease entity HFRS was first recognized by Western
medicine during the Korean War.
In 1993, a newly-recognized species of hantavirus was found to be behind the
Hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS, aka HPS) caused by the Sin Nombre virus in New Mexico and other Four Corners states. In
addition to Hantaan virus and Sin Nombre virus, several other hantaviruses have been implicated as etiologic agents
for either HFRS and HCPS. Regions especially affected by HFRS include China, the Korean Peninsula and Russia
(Hantaan and Seoul viruses) and northern and western Europe (Puumala and Dobrava
viruses). Regions with the highest incidences of HCPS include Patagonian Argentina and Chile, Brazil, the US and Canada, and Panama, where a milder form of disease that spares the heart
has been recognized. The two agents of HCPS in South America are
Andes virus (aka Oran,
Castelo de Sonhos, Lechiguanas, Juquitiba, Araraquara and Bermejo viruses, among many other synonyms), which is the only
hantavirus that can be transmitted person-to-person, and Laguna Negra virus. In the US, minor causes of HCPS include New York virus, Bayou virus and possibly Black Creek Canal
virus.
HFRS is caused by viruses that target the kidney (hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome) and cause kidney disease, especially among rural dwellers who have contact with rodents.
HCPS targets the lungs, but deaths due to HCPS are almost always the result of a shut down of the heart, causing hypotension, shock and/or malignant
arrhthymias.
Links
- [1] (http://www.tulane.edu/~dmsander/WWW/335/Hantaviruses.html)
- CDC's Hantavirus Information
page (http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/hanta/hps/noframes/phys/technicalinfoindex.htm)
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