Mice may be small in size, but they can expose you to some fairly big health risks from more than two dozen diseases.
Numerous studies reveal that thousands of people around the world get sick, and many die from related illnesses.
Mice spread diseases in a number of ways. You can get sick from being in contact with mice droppings, urine or saliva.
These particles can be on food items, countertops, cabinets, and other surfaces around the house. They can also come from contaminated water, pet food, and garden beds.
Mice may also transfer diseases if they bite you, or they may infest ticks, mites, and fleas that may also bite you.
You may also get mice-related diseases from person to person infection or from breathing in bacteria from mice droppings.
Some of the diseases mice carry include:
Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis (LCMV)
Typhus fever is a type of bacterial disease that may be spread through ticks, lice, and fleas.
Sylvatic typhus is a type of typhus fever that can pass from sick ice to lice and mites.
With any form of typhus, may experience coughing, fever, muscle aches, headaches, inflammation of the brain, or swollen lymph nodes.
You can get Murine typhus through infected fleas. If you get the disease, you may experience skin rashes, vomiting, headache, and weakness.
This is a little known, but potentially fatal disease from mice. Some symptoms of the disease may include problems talking, vomiting, reduced muscle coordination, fever, headaches, seizures, and brain damage.
Lyme disease is transmitted through ticks that feed on infected mice. Symptoms of the disease can include arthritis, stiffness in the neck, and loss of memory, skin rashes, headaches, and nerve pain.
Severe symptoms may also include heart palpitations and damage to the spine and brain.
Rat Bite Fever
You can get this type of virus or bacteria from mice scratches or bites. The potentially fatal infection may cause headaches, swelling, vomiting, enlarged lymph nodes, skin rashes, and fever.
It’s a form of a rat-bite fever that’s passed from rat-infested food and water. Some symptoms of the fever are vomiting and sore throat.
The disease may be passed to humans by parasites in ticks found on rats and mice.
Mild symptoms may result in jaundice, flu-like feelings and anemia. Severe symptoms of Babesiosis may help weaken the immune system and expose you to other illnesses.
It is spread from mice via infected sandflies carrying the virus. With the disease, persons may experience swollen lymph nodes and skin sores around the bite areas.
You can get salmonella from contaminated food that’s been bitten by mice.
Salmonella may cause belly cramps, fever or diarrhea.
Tick fever is another disease that can spread from mice through ticks carrying the virus.
With the disease, you may get flu-type symptoms like muscle pains, fever, headaches, tiredness, and chills.
Other symptoms may include rash, vomiting, on and off fever and sore throat.
La Crosse Encephalitis
The disease may cause seizures and other brain-related issues. Other symptoms may include tiredness, fever, vomiting, headaches, and nausea.
It is transmitted from mice through a virus to infected mosquitos.
Tularemia can be transmitted through bites from rats to infested ticks or deer flies.
You may also contract the disease from touching an infected dead mouse or inhaling the bacteria spores.
If you inhale the Tularemia bacteria, you may find it hard to breathe, get chest pains or cough a lot.
If you get a bite from an infected tick, you may experience swollen lymph nodes or ulcers in areas where you get the bite.
Dust particles around mice droppings may help spread Hantavirus disease. Symptoms of Hantavirus may include headaches, fever, tiredness, and muscle pains.
If the disease persists, infected persons may experience respiratory problems that may be fatal.
The disease is spread through infected food, water, and mice droppings. It can also be spread from one human to another.
It may start with flu-type symptoms such as headaches, fever, and weakness.
Severe symptoms of Lassa fever may cause complications including vomiting, breathing problems, tremors, hemorrhaging in the gums, eyes, and nose, and swelling in the face.
The plague is one of the more traditional diseases passed to humans from fleas that feed on infected mice.
The symptoms include chills, fever, weakness, headaches, and enlarged lymph nodes.
You may also die if the symptoms persist or are not treated early.
Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis (LCMV)
The disease affects lots of people around the world. You can contract it through mice droppings containing the virus.
While you may experience flu-like symptoms with the disease, you can also develop brain problems.
Others may experience vomiting, headaches, weakness, vomiting, and fever.
The disease travels from rats to mite to humans. Symptoms are fever, coughing, muscle aches, enlarged lymph nodes, and headaches.
Scrub Typhus may be fatal if left untreated for about 20 to 60 percent of persons who contract the disease.
Leptospirosis is also called Weil’s disease and commonly affects millions worldwide.
Persons may contract leptospirosis from food or water contaminated by mice urine.
You may also contract leptospirosis from handling contaminated pet food or household cupboards where mice may touch.
Symptoms of leptospirosis may resemble the flu or dengue fever and are often misdiagnosed.
Severe problems may include high fever, meningitis, and liver or kidney problems. The disease may cause death if left untreated.
Rats are prevalent in many countries around the world. They leave feces, urine and saliva on every surface they touch.
These particles are responsible for more than two dozen diseases, some of which can be fatal if left untreated.
Diseases from mice may cause lots of discomforts, including high fever, flu-like symptoms, and more serious complications like brain, spine, liver and kidney problems or even death.
One way to control the mice population is through rat traps. They help reduce the incidence of rats running around and infecting your house.
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