Deadly Heartland Virus Is Much More Common Than Scientists Thought

Image: Scientists think the lone star tick (center) likely transmits Heartland disease to people. And the virus probably also circulates in deer and coyotes. iStockphoto; CDC; iStockphoto

npr.org - September 16th, 2015 - Michaeleen Doucleff

It's called the Heartland virus disease. Since it was first detected in 2009, there have been only nine reported cases in the Midwest, including two deaths.

So scientists thought the Heartland virus was limited to a small region.

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