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Hantavirus, due to rodent droppings, has been found in and around Santa Fe County.  Here are tips to prevent infection.

How Do I Prevent Hantavirus?

Eliminate or minimize contact with rodents in your home, workplace, or campsite:

If rodents do not find that where you are is a good place for them to be, then you are less likely to be exposed to them.  Seal up holes and gaps in your home or garage.  Place traps in and around your home to decrease rodent infestation.  Clean up any easy-to-get food.

Recent research results show that many people who became ill with HPS developed the disease after having been in frequent contact with rodents and/or their droppings around a home or a workplace.  On the other hand, many people who became ill reported that they had not seen rodents or rodent droppings at all.  Therefore, if you live in an area where the carrier rodents are known to live, try to keep your home, vacation place, workplace, or campsite clean.

Clean Up Infested Areas, Using Safety Precautions:

Put on latex rubber gloves before cleaning up.  Do not stir up dust by sweeping up or vacuuming up droppings, urine or nesting materials.  Instead, thoroughly wet contaminated areas with detergent or liquid to deactivate the virus.  Most general-purpose disinfectants and household detergents are effective.  However, a hypochlorite solution prepared by mixing 1 and 1/2 cups of household bleach in 1 gallon of water may be used in place of commercial disinfectant.  When using the chlorine solution, avoid spilling the mixture on clothing or other items that may be damaged.

Once everything is wet, take up contaminated materials with a damp towel, then mop or sponge the area with disinfectant.  Spray dead rodents with disinfectant, then double-bag along with all cleaning materials and bury or burn—or throw out in appropriate waste disposal system.  If burning or burying is not feasible, contact your local or state health department about other disposal methods.

Finally, disinfect gloves before taking them off with disinfectant or soap and water.  After taking off the clean gloves, thoroughly wash hands with soap and warm water.

When going into cabins or outbuildings (or work areas) that have been closed for a while, open them up and air out before cleaning.

Hantaviruses and Disinfectants

Hantaviruses are surrounded by a lipid (fatty) envelope, so they are somewhat fragile.  The lipid envelope can be destroyed and the virus killed by fat solvents, such as alcohol, ordinary disinfectants and household bleach.  That is why one of the most important ways to prevent transmitting the disease is to carefully wet down dead rodents and areas where rodents have been with disinfectant and/or bleach.  When you do this, you are killing the virus itself and reducing the chance that the virus will get into the air.

Strength and Quantity of Hypochlorite Solutions (Bleach): a 10% bleach solution should be used to deactivate Hantaviruses.

For more information go to http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/hanta/hps/.  To report possible Hantavirus, call 986.2455.