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der=0 cellpadding=3 cellspacing=0 width=100%> El Niño linked to hantavirus
MAY 17, 2000

An article comparing an increase in the Hantavirus with and increase in moisture was recently published. The authors conclude that increased moisture from El Niño leads to more food for deer mice, which increases the deer mice population. More deer mice increases exposure to Hantavirus since deer mice are the common carrier of Hantavirus in New Mexico.

It is still unknown what drives the deer mice into homes, bringing humans into contact with the urine, feces, and saliva of the deer mice.

So far, only two people in New Mexico have been diagnosed with Hantavirus, including a Navajo woman from the Four Corners.

Get the Story:
El Niño, Hantavirus Connected (The Albuquerque Journal 5/17)