Family: CDC Confirms Hantavirus Killed Chiropractor

The family of Montauk chiropractor Dr. Dave Hartstein said health officials have confirmed he died from hantavirus, a deadly rodent-borne disease.

On Wednesday, Shira Barlizay, a spokeswoman for his wife Heather Hartstein, said the CDC called with the news. 

It is only the fourth confirmed hantavirus death in New York State.

Hartstein . He is survived by three young children.

"They don't know what strain it is," Barlizay said, adding that the CDC will continue to investigate. The CDC plans to come to the Hartstein home to conduct more tests as well as try to trap the infected rodent, Barlizay said.

Lola Russell, a spokeswoman with the CDC in Atlanta, said she could neither confirm or deny the results the family said they received.

"We are working with the State Department of Health," she said.

A spokesman for the New York State Department of Health confirmed it was hantavirus that killed Hartstein.

On Tuesday, the Suffolk County Department of Health Commissioner James L. Tomarken said, “If the results of the autopsy determine that there is a public health concern, we will address that concern appropriately," according to a statement.

A spokesperson for that department did not return an email requesting comment on Wednesday.

Barlizay said the Suffolk County Medical Examiner's office had already told the family hantavirus was suspected.

"It doesn't change the fact that her beloved husband was taken from her and her children," Barlizay said of her best friend. "She doesn't care about anything other than wishing she had her husband back."

Hartstein had been feeling ill occasionally since early June. His family called 911 on the morning of June 17 and he died a few hours later at the hospital.

Hantavirus infection cases are rare; a total of 560 cases of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome were reported in the United States through Dec. 15, 2010.

A service will be held for Hartstein at Sole East on Thursday.