Ontario County officials said Thursday, May 14, they are investigating a suspected locally acquired hantavirus case involving a Geneva High School student, ABC News reported.
Geneva is about 45 miles southeast of Rochester.
The suspected case has been described as mild, with symptoms including fatigue, aches, and lethargy, according to ABC News.
Health officials stressed that the suspected case is not connected to the deadly MV Hondius cruise ship outbreak and does not pose a risk to the general public.
The Geneva City School District said there is no evidence of risk to other students or staff, ABC News reported.
Health officials said hantavirus strains found in the US do not spread from person to person. They are typically spread through mouse and rodent droppings, especially when urine, feces, or nesting materials become airborne during cleaning.
That means the suspected student case does not require the kind of quarantine measures tied to the MV Hondius outbreak, which involves the Andes strain of hantavirus.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that the Andes virus is the only hantavirus known to spread person-to-person, usually through close contact with an ill person.
The CDC says symptoms of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome usually begin 1 to 8 weeks after contact with an infected rodent. Early symptoms can include fatigue, fever, and muscle aches, especially in the thighs, hips, back, and shoulders.
Headaches, dizziness, chills, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain may also occur. Four to 10 days after the first phase, symptoms can progress to coughing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, and fluid in the lungs, according to the CDC.
Anyone who suspects hantavirus disease should see a physician immediately and mention possible rodent exposure, the CDC says.
The CDC also advises people to avoid contact with rodent urine, droppings, saliva, and nesting materials. When cleaning areas where rodents may have been present, people should avoid dry sweeping and follow safe cleanup procedures.
Daily Voice reported Friday, May 15, that the CDC said 41 people in 15 US states are being monitored after the MV Hondius outbreak, but there are no confirmed US cases linked to that cruise ship outbreak.
That outbreak has been tied globally to 11 cases, including three deaths.
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