Hanta Viruses

Hanta viruses are rodent-borne viruses with a wide geographic distribution. Hantaviruses have caused Hanta virus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS) in the American Southwest.

Hantaan and closely related viruses cause Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal (kidney) Syndrome, (also known as Korean hemorrhagic fever or epidemic hemorrhagic fever).

Korean hemorrhagic fever is the most common disease due to hanta viruses. It was described prior to WW II in Manchuria along the Amur River, among United Nations troops during the Korean conflict, and subsequently in Japan, China, and in the Russian Far East. Severe disease also occurs in some Balkan states, including Bosnia, Serbia and Greece.