Virus Among the Navajo

Virus Among the Navajo

Medical investigators, such as myself, have not given a great deal of attention to the "medical" traditions of indigenous groups in the past. But the outcomes of the recent investigation that took place in "The Four Corners" area exemplify our need to consider age-old notions right along with the ecological history of the region in question. A few months ago, the New Mexico Department of Health notified my department (Office of Medical Investigations) that three young and healthy adults from the Navajo Nation had died of a sudden respiratory illness. Their symptoms had been the similar: fever, chills, muscle aches, nausea and vomiting, and abdominal pain, followed by coughing and shortness of breath, then the abrupt onset of respiratory distress which is usually fatal (KCPH). Our first inclination was to look at diseases that are known to affect the Navajo specifically, such as bubonic plague, influenza, and viral pneumonia. However, laboratory results indicated that these diseases had not caused the deaths, nor had toxic chemicals. Furthermore, the perplexing disease had begun to take the lives of non-Navajo people living near the reservation (AMNH). By the end of May the mysterious deaths had attracted significant media attention. I remember seeing the headline "Mystery Illness Kills 10 on Reservation" in the Sun-Sentinel while I was conducting interviews there. Without knowledge of a possible cause, our department, and several other agencies, began an intense investigation.

Samples of tissue from patients infected with the mysterious disease were sent to the CDC Special Pathogens Branch for analysis. After a few weeks and several tests, the virologists linked the disease with an unknown type of hantavirus. Because other hantaviruses were known to be transmitted to people by inhalation or ingestion of rodent feces or urine, our next task was to collect as many species of rodent in the area as possible in order to pinpoint the source of the virus (AMNH). While trapping rodents, we decided that it was worth the risk to not wear protective clothing or masks so as to avoid alarming residents of "The Four Corners" region (CDC). After testing approximately 1,700 rodents we had found a link--the prevalent deer mouse carried the unknown type of hantavirus. But why was this mouse suddenly infecting people in this region? I was becoming frustrated, my years of work in medicine were failing me and I couldn't figure out why these people kept getting sick.