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Another case of hantavirus confirmed in Arizona

Posted at 5:34 AM, Mar 23, 2016
and last updated 2016-03-23 10:33:43-04

Public health officials have confirmed Coconino County's second case of hantavirus this year.

They say the person has recovered from the illness.

In January, another Coconino County resident died from complications of the hantavirus.

The Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation said that person was a resident of the Navajo Nation, but no other identifying information was released.

Hantavirus is transmitted to people who come into contact with or breathe infected urine, droppings or saliva of wild mice, primarily deer mice. It is not spread from person to person

The illness starts with a fever, headache and muscle aches, and progresses rapidly to severe difficulty in breathing.

Health officials say 16 people in Arizona have died of hantavirus complications since January 2006. Two of those deaths were in Coconino County.