WHO seeks to calm concerns over hantavirus

No step towards a pandemic: WHO seeks to reassure about the hantavirus Keystone-SDA

The Geneva-based World Health Organization (WHO) says further cases of hantavirus are possible beyond the handful recently confirmed but insists this is “not the start of an epidemic”.

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So far, eight hantavirus cases have been identified, five of which are confirmed, after an outbreak on a cruise ship. Three people have died.

Hantavirus is usually spread by rodents but can in rare cases be transmitted person-to-person. There is no vaccine or specific treatment for this virus. But the authorities and the WHO are seeking to reassure about the “low” level of epidemic risk, as the virus is less contagious than Covid-19.

“This is not coronavirus, this is a very different virus,” Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO director of epidemic and pandemic management, told a press conference in Geneva on Thursday. “This is not the same situation we were in six years ago… This is not the start of an epidemic. This is not the start of a pandemic.”

“We believe” that this episode “will remain limited if public health measures are applied and if all countries show solidarity,” added Abdi Rahman Mahamud, director of alert and response operations for health emergencies at WHO.

Since the first cases were identified, the organisation has repeatedly assessed the risk to the public as low.

Eight cases – three deaths

So far, eight cases have been identified, five of them confirmed. Three people – a Dutch couple and a German national – died in the outbreak on the MV Hondius.

Several of those infected had taken part in a birdwatching expedition in South America, in areas where wild rodents – the usual carriers of hantaviruses – are present.

The WHO is also aware of several people who had contact with infected individuals and are showing symptoms.

“We are in close contact with the authorities for each of them,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

Retrospective contact tracing in Switzerland

Given the incubation period, which can last up to six weeks, additional infections may yet be detected, he warned. Countries concerned are continuing so‑called retrospective contact tracing, a process that “takes a lot of time”, according to Mahamud.

“We firmly believe” these efforts, combined with “safe and informed” monitoring, will limit further spread of the virus, the WHO official said.

In Switzerland, contact tracing has been launched following the admission of a patient to Zurich University Hospital. WHO guidance was expected as early as Friday.

The patient had travelled to Switzerland on a flight from Johannesburg, where they were in contact with hundreds of other passengers. However, infection with the Andes strain requires very close and prolonged contact.

The patient, admitted on May 4, is in a stable condition, Zurich University Hospital told the Keystone-SDA news agency. Symptoms include a slight decline in general health, mild fever, joint pain and cough. The patient remains in strict quarantine for up to 45 days.

WHO expert sent to ship

Morale on board the MV Hondius has improved since the vessel resumed movement, Tedros said, adding that he had spoken with the ship’s captain on Thursday. The WHO has deployed an expert to the vessel.

The ship is en route to the Canary Islands, where nearly 150 passengers and crew will disembark. The WHO is coordinating with the countries of their nationality to organise repatriation once they leave the vessel.

According to the cruise operator, around 30 people disembarked on Saint Helena island in late April. The WHO has informed the authorities of the 12 countries concerned, including Switzerland, and has dispatched 2,500 test kits from Argentina to five countries.

How outbreak unfolded

The deadly outbreak unfolded over the course of weeks on the ship that sailed from Argentina toward Antarctica and then across the Atlantic Ocean, stopping at or near remote islands on the way as passengers and crew members fell sick, according to information from the cruise operator, WHO and ship tracking data.

It shows nearly a month passed between when an elderly Dutch man fell sick and died in the South Atlantic and laboratory tests in South Africa — more than 3,500 kilometres (2,174 miles) away — confirmed hantavirus infections.

Nearly 150 passengers and crew members from 23 countries were on the ship, which is waiting off the coast of West Africa.

The Dutch company that operates the ship offers “expedition cruises” that involve trips to the Antarctic and several islands in the South Atlantic to see some of the remotest places on earth.

The cruises can last a month or more and cost between $6,000 and $25,000, depending on the cabin.

The MV Hondius set off from southern Argentina on April 1.

Adapted from French by AI/with additional input/sb

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