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Snippets: Both men had been diagnosed with Q fever, a rare bacterial infection, the previous spring. Nevada had eight reported cases of Q fever in 2007, six of them in Churchill County. In 2006, the state had seven reported cases, all of them in Churchill County.
Q fever is a comparatively rare bacterial infection usually associated with farms, veterinary clinics, slaughterhouses and animal research centers, according to the National Institutes of Health. Grazing animals have the Q fever bacteria in their bodies, and it is released when the animals give birth or defecate. Humans can get the disease by breathing barnyard air or dust that contains the microbes.
The bacteria can remain viable for months or years in soil, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The federal government lists Q fever as a potential bio-terrorism weapon because small amounts of the bacterium can cause infection, the microbes are resistant to heat and cold and are spread through the air. The disease is under reported, according to the CDC, and Western states usually confirm a handful of cases each year. Doctors said about half of the people exposed to the bacteria show no disease symptoms at all.