A deadly, roden-borne illness known as hantavirus has killed three people and infected others after an outbreak on a cruise ship – but Australia could be among the safest places in the world from the deadly disease.
A deadly, rodent-borne illness known as hantavirus has killed three people and infected others after an outbreak aboard a cruise ship – but Australia could be among the safest places in the world from the deadly disease.
Luxury cruise ship MV Hondius, which has 150 people on board, is believed to be the source of the outbreak, and the vessel had been marooned in quarantine off the coast of Cape Verde in West Africa since Sunday.
The boat has since left the coast and is bound for Spain with a plan to dock at the Canary Islands after three people with suspected Hantavirus were evacuated, Reuters reports.
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There are now fears the deadly virus has not been contained to the cruise ship.
One of the three deaths is a 69-year-old Dutch national who disembarked the ship when it stopped on an island off St Helena on April 24.
She then travelled to South Africa.
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has confirmed the woman then "briefly" boarded a plane in Johannesburg on April 25.
"Due to the passenger's medical condition at the time, the crew decided not to allow the passenger to travel on the flight," KLM said in a statement.
"The passenger sadly later passed away in Johannesburg."
The World Health Organisation (WHO) is now attempting to conduct contact tracing on this flight and the flight she took to South Africa.
WHO said eight cases of hantavirus – three confirmed and five suspected – have been confirmed on people who were aboard the ship.
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South Africa has since identified 65 people who have been in contact with confirmed or suspected hantavirus cases, while another 12 have been identified in other countries.
Director of epidemic and pandemic preparedness at WHO, Maria Van Kerkhove, tempered fears that the hantavirus outbreak was the "next COVID".
"But it is a serious infectious disease," she told Associated Press.
"Most people will never be exposed to this."
So what exactly is hantavirus and how does it spread?
Is there hantavirus in Australia?
Australia is "unique" as it is the only inhabited continent where no confirmed human cases of hantavirus have ever been recorded, the CSIRO says.
But that doesn't mean hantavirus does not exist here.
"However, antibodies to hantavirus have been detected in some Australian rodents, suggesting related viruses are likely present at low levels," CSIRO Senior Communication Advisor, Health and Biosecurity and ACDP Eliza Keck said.
The lack of reported cases in Australia has mystified health officials – and one explanation could be that the Australian strain of the virus is too mild to be diagnosed.
There were four Australians on board the MV Hondius cruise ship, and one of them has reportedly returned home already.
Can hantavirus spread from person to person?
The particular strain of virus detected on MV Hondius is the Andes strain, which is notable for its ability to spread between humans.
According to WHO, human-to-human transmission has been reported in previous outbreaks of Andes virus.
Human hantavirus infection is primarily acquired through contact with the urine, faeces, or saliva of infected rodents.
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How long does it take for hantavirus symptoms to show?
Hantavirus can cause two syndromes: hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS).
Symptoms of hantavirus can vary between the two, but illness onset symptoms include fever, gastrointestinal symptoms, rapid progression to pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome and shock.
The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that symptoms of HPS usually start to show one to eight weeks after contact with an infected rodent.
Symptoms for HFRS can develop faster, often within one to two weeks of exposure.
Is hantavirus fatal?
The Andres strain of hantavirus can cause a severe lung-focused type of disease, which can be fatal.
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) estimates that between 35 to 50 per cent of this virus is fatal.
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