Hantavirus: Treatment and Prevention

Currently there is no effective antiviral medicine for Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS).

Treatment

When hantavirus is suspected or confirmed, you need to be admitted to the hospital as soon as possible to be treated and monitored.

Prevention

• Eliminate or reduce contact with rodents in your house, work or campsite.

  • Seal up holes and gaps in your home or garage.

  • Place traps around or in dwellings that may be rodent infested.

  • Clean up food that would be easy for rodents to access (even pet food).

• Keep your kitchen clean (don't leave dirty dishes out, clean the counters, keep food covered and put away in tight containers, sweep and mop the floor regularly)

• Tightly lid your trash cans.

• Place traps along baseboards and in tight places.

• Avoid areas showing signs of rodents.

• Avoid actions in rodent areas that raise dust-carefully wet the area with disinfectant to reduce the chance that the virus will get into the air.

• Eliminate nesting material sources around the outside of your home (brush, grass, junk).

• Use 12 inch metal flashing around the base of wooden, earth, or adobe homes.

• Move trash, woodpiles, and hay stacks 100 feet.

• Wear a protective mask and rubber gloves when cleaning areas that are infested with rodents.

• When going into cabins, outbuildings, or work areas that have been closed for awhile, open them up and air them out before cleaning.

• Spray water or a 10 percent bleach solution on the area to be cleaned prior to sweeping.

For further information visit the CDC website.