We describe a case of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome in a patient exposed to Sin Nombre virus in a coastal county in California, USA, that had no previous record of human cases. Environmental evaluation coupled with genotypic analysis of virus isolates from the case-patient and locally trapped rodents identified the likely exposure location.
Keywords: California; Peromyscus maniculatus; Sin Nombre virus; United States; hantavirus pulmonary syndrome; molecular epidemiology; vector-borne infections; viruses.