Nelson Morales

EXPLAINER: Spread by rodents, Hantavirus is potentially fatal, with no specific cure

Article (news)

Agence France-Presse

<p>Hantavirus, the disease which has caused a deadly outbreak on a cruise ship in the southern Atlantic, circulates in rodents and can be deadly when transmitted to humans.</p><p>Dutch cruise operator Oceanwide Expeditions confirmed Monday it was dealing with &quot;a serious medical situation&quot; on board the MV Hondius, travelling from Argentina to Cape Verde.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/health-science/2026/5/4/three-die-on-atlantic-cruise-ship-from-suspected-hantavirus-who-1247">Three die on Atlantic cruise ship from suspected hantavirus: WHO</a></div><p>Hantaviruses are among the pathogens that can cause respiratory and cardiac distress, as well as haemorrhagic fevers.</p><p>There are no vaccines or specific medications to combat hantaviruses, meaning treatment consists solely of attempting to relieve the symptoms.</p><div><br/></div><p>- The virus -</p><p>There are many types of hantavirus, which vary in their geographical spread and their pathologies, according to Switzerland&#x27;s FOPH health ministry.</p><p>&quot;Human-to-human transmission has only been observed with one single virus type, which is extremely rare,&quot; it says.</p><p>Hantaviruses are found on every continent.</p><p>The virus is named after the Hantan River in South Korea, where more than 3,000 troops fell seriously ill after becoming infected with it during the 1950-1953 Korean War, the FOPH says.</p><div><br/></div><p>- Transmission -</p><p>Hantaviruses are transmitted to humans through infected wild rodents, such as mice or rats, which shed the virus in their saliva, urine, and droppings.</p><p>A bite, contact with these rodents or their droppings, or breathing in contaminated dust can cause infection.</p><p>The French National Public Health Agency says human infection generally occurs through the inhalation of dust and aerosols contaminated by the excretions of infected animals.</p><p>This is typically &quot;during activities in forests, or in long uninhabited buildings near forests, as well as during activities in rural areas where fields and farms offer a favourable environment for reservoir rodents&quot;, it says.</p><p>The only way to minimise the risk of infection is to avoid contact with rodents and their secretions and excretions.</p><p>The World Health Organization&#x27;s Europe director Hans Kluge said hantavirus infections are &quot;uncommon&quot; and &quot;it is not easily transmitted between people&quot;.</p><p>&quot;The risk to the wider public remains low. There is no need for panic or travel restrictions,&quot; he said Monday.</p><div><br/></div><p>- Diagnosis -</p><p>Suspected cases can be confirmed through various laboratory tests, according to the WHO, including through &quot;the presence of hantavirus-specific IgM antibodies&quot;.</p><div><br/></div><p>- Onset -</p><p>The two most common illnesses caused by infection are haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS), caused by hantaviruses found mostly in Europe and Asia; and hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS), caused by viruses found in the Americas.</p><p>The hantavirus types in the Americas can also cause pulmonary oedema or acute respiratory failure.</p><p>Different health authorities give varying time periods before symptoms start to manifest.</p><p>According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), HPS symptoms usually start to show one to eight weeks after contact.</p><p>HFRS symptoms usually develop within one to two weeks after exposure, and in rare cases, up to eight weeks, says the CDC.</p><div><br/></div><p>- Symptoms -</p><p>Though most cases of hantavirus infection pass unnoticed, according to Switzerland&#x27;s FOPH, hantaviruses can cause infections of varying severity in humans -- sometimes fatal.</p><p>The first clinical symptoms generally present like flu: fever, headache, and muscle aches.</p><p>The CDC says four to 10 days after initial HPS illness, late symptoms appear, which include coughing and shortness of breath. </p><p>&quot;Patients might experience tightness in the chest, as the lungs fill with fluid,&quot; it says.</p><p>The types of hantavirus prevalent in Europe and Asia can cause kidney dysfunction and even acute kidney failure.</p><div><br/></div><p>- Fatality rate -</p><p>The Public Health Agency of Canada says around 200 HPS cases occur each year, primarily in North and South America, putting the average case fatality rate at 40 percent.</p><p>It adds that between 150,000 and 200,000 HFRS cases occur each year worldwide, most of which are in China, where the average case fatality rate is from one to 12 percent.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/67fG4rjY7eA?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>Hantavirus, the disease which has caused a deadly outbreak on a cruise ship in the southern Atlantic, circulates in rodents and can be deadly when transmitted to humans.</p>

Hantavirus, the disease which has caused a deadly outbreak on a cruise ship in the southern Atlantic, circulates in rodents and can be deadly when transmitted to humans.