HANTAVIRUS PULMONARY SYNDROME IN CANADA, 1989-1999 Introduction

Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) was first described in 1993 in the southwestern United States. HPS is a respiratory illness associated with the inhalation of aerosolized rodent excreta (urine and feces) contaminated by hantavirus particles. Four hantavirus species have been implicated as etiological agents of HPS in North America. One species, Sin Nombre virus, has been associated with the largest proportion of HPS cases. Its primary reservoir is the deer mouse, Peromyscus maniculatus. Person-to-person transmission of HPS has not been documented in North America.