Use this glossary alongside the FAQ and clinical reference pages.
- Andes virus (ANDV)
- A New World hantavirus species native to South America; the only hantavirus with documented person-to-person transmission.
- Aerosol
- Tiny airborne particles. Hantavirus becomes infectious when rodent excreta are disturbed and aerosolized.
- ARDS
- Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome — severe lung injury that can occur in HPS.
- Asymptomatic
- Showing no symptoms despite infection. True asymptomatic hantavirus infection is uncommon.
- Bunyavirales
- The order of viruses that includes the family Hantaviridae.
- Capillary leak
- Fluid escaping blood vessels into tissues — a hallmark of severe hantavirus infection.
- Case fatality rate (CFR)
- Percentage of confirmed cases that result in death. HPS CFR is roughly 38% in the U.S.
- Contact tracing
- Identifying and monitoring people who may have been exposed to a confirmed case.
- Deer mouse
- Peromyscus maniculatus, the primary reservoir of Sin Nombre virus in North America.
- Dobrava virus
- An Old World hantavirus causing severe HFRS in the Balkans.
- ECMO
- Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation — life-support sometimes used in severe HPS.
- ELISA
- Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay — a common test for hantavirus antibodies.
- Endemic
- Regularly found in a particular region or population.
- Hantaan virus
- The prototype hantavirus, named for the Hantan River in Korea.
- Hantaviridae
- The family of viruses that includes all hantaviruses.
- HFRS
- Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome — the Old World form of hantavirus disease.
- HPS
- Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome — the New World form of hantavirus disease.
- IgG / IgM
- Classes of antibodies. IgM appears first; IgG persists for years and indicates past infection.
- Incubation period
- Time between exposure and symptom onset. For hantavirus: 1–8 weeks.
- N95 respirator
- A mask filtering ≥95% of airborne particles; recommended for cleaning rodent waste.
- Orthohantavirus
- The genus within Hantaviridae containing all medically important hantaviruses.
- PAHO
- Pan American Health Organization — regional WHO office for the Americas.
- Person-to-person transmission
- Direct spread from one person to another — confirmed only for Andes virus among hantaviruses.
- Puumala virus
- An Old World hantavirus causing usually mild HFRS, common in Scandinavia.
- Reservoir
- The animal species that naturally hosts a virus. Hantavirus reservoirs are rodents.
- Ribavirin
- An antiviral with established efficacy for HFRS if started early; uncertain for HPS.
- RT-PCR
- Reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction — molecular test detecting viral RNA.
- Seoul virus
- An Old World hantavirus carried by brown rats; found worldwide due to maritime trade.
- Sin Nombre virus
- The North American HPS strain identified during the 1993 Four Corners outbreak.
- Supportive care
- Treatment that supports body functions (oxygen, fluids, blood pressure) without targeting the virus directly.
- Surveillance
- Ongoing monitoring of disease occurrence to detect outbreaks and trends.
- Thrombocytopenia
- Low platelet count — a common laboratory finding in hantavirus infection.