Rodent-associated Bartonella febrile illness, Southwestern United States.

Serum specimens from 114 patients hospitalized with a febrile illness were tested with an indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) using Bartonella antigens prepared from 6 species of sigmodontine rodents and 3 known human Bartonella pathogens: B. henselae, B. quintana, and B.

Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome: a zebra worth knowing.

Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) is a severe cardiopulmonary illness most often caused by the Sin Nombre virus, which is transmitted to humans by inhalation of aerosolized particles of rodent excreta or direct rodent contact. Although HPS is more common in the western United States, cases have been identified in 31 states. The illness begins as a nonspecific febrile prodrome, sharing many of its initial symptoms with other more common viral infections.