Its average survival lasts between two and four days, depending on the surrounding conditions. Hantavirus doesn't survive quite as long when exposed to more extreme outdoor conditions. But how long does hantavirus live in droppings indoors? At room temperature, it can survive for up to four days.
However, the virus is shed continuously from them: into the droppings and urine they leave around the room, and into their saliva, which dries on anything they have chewed, such as nesting material. Out in the environment like this, the virus can live for several days.
The chance of being exposed to hantavirus is greatest when people work, play, or live in closed spaces where rodents are actively living. However, recent research results show that many people who have become ill with HPS were infected with the disease after continued contact with rodents and/or their droppings.
However, old rodent feces dries out and releases particles into the air. Once the fecal particles become airborne, you can breathe them in and catch a serious disease or illness.
Diseases are mainly spread to people from rodents when they breathe in contaminated air. CDC recommends you NOT vacuum (even vacuums with a HEPA filter) or sweep rodent urine, droppings, or nesting materials. These actions can cause tiny droplets containing viruses to get into the air.
The risk of acquiring hantavirus is extremely rare, even among people who are consistently exposed to mice and other rodents. The majority of exposures (70%) occur around the home.
Summary: Rodent droppings pose several health risks, including infectious diseases such as Hantavirus and leptospirosis, as well as the potential for mold growth and attraction of other pests.
Rats can also carry a viral disease that is released when dried feces, urine or saliva break up. That virus can be inhaled, causing respiratory illness. That's why it is so important to carefully clean up any evidence of a rat or mouse.
Hantavirus antibody-positive rodents have been found across Australia although, to date, there are no reports of infections in humans. This could be due to misdiagnosis clinically and/or inadequate laboratory technique/skills.
Survival of the virus for 2 or 3 days has been shown at normal room temperature. Exposure to sunlight will decrease the time of viability, and freezing temperatures will actually increase the time that the virus survives.
Any man, woman, or child who is around mice or rats that carry harmful hantaviruses can get HPS. You do not have to already be sick to be at risk for HPS. Healthy people have become ill with HPS.
In most recorded cases, symptoms develop 1 to 8 weeks after exposure. Early symptoms, such as fever, dry cough, body aches, headaches, diarrhea and abdominal pain, are similar to many other viral illnesses. This may prevent an HPS diagnosis before the illness progresses.
Although prevalence varies temporally and geographically, on average about 10% of deer mice tested throughout the range of the species show evidence of infection with SNV.
House mice do not carry hantavirus.
Hantavirus infection can have no symptoms or cause mild to severe illness. Fever is the most common symptom in all three types of disease and lasts about 3-7 days.
Native Australian rodents (for example Hopping Mice) pose little or no threat to public health and should be left alone as they are protected species. However introduced rodents may infest residential and agricultural areas and carry disease.
There is no specific treatment or cure for hantavirus infection. Treatment of patients with HPS remains supportive in nature. Patients should receive appropriate, broad-spectrum antibiotic therapy while awaiting confirmation of a diagnosis of HPS.
A 1% solution of household bleach (1:100 dilution) is an adequate surface disinfectant, which can be used for wiping down potentially contaminated surfaces. A 10% solution of bleach (1:10 dilution) is recommended for heavily soiled areas or items contaminated with rodent urine, droppings, or nesting materials.
Diseases Spread by Mice and Rats
Avoid touching your nose, ears, or mouth, and always wash your hands (even with protection) once you're done. Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome is a respiratory disease caused by stirring up air contaminated by rodent feces. (Avoid sweeping up droppings!)
Spray bleach/water formula onto rodent urine, droppings, and nest particles. Allow these areas to saturate; this will kill off hantaviruses. With paper towels, wipe the areas clean and dispose of the rodent remnants in plastic garbage bags.
Mice defecate as they're active, and they're not picky about where they do their business. As they travel from their nests to forage for food and more nesting materials, mice freely release their excrement. A single mouse will leave behind 50 to 75 droppings each day—almost always outside its nest.
When to see a doctor. The signs and symptoms of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome can worsen suddenly and may quickly become life-threatening. If you have flu-like symptoms that progressively worsen over a few days, see your health care provider. Get immediate medical care if you have trouble breathing.
Hantavirus infections can be fatal. Fatality rates may reach up to 60%. There is no available treatment. Early diagnostic may reduce fatality rates by half.
Early symptoms include fatigue, fever and muscle aches, especially in the large muscle groups—thighs, hips, back, and sometimes shoulders. These symptoms are universal. There may also be headaches, dizziness, chills, and abdominal problems, such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain.