Hantavirus risk
Hantavirus
MV Hondius, a cruise ship with 148 passengers
Deaths, 3
Confirmed infections, 2
Suspected, 8
At least 29 passengers (12 nationalities) left 24 April (after the first fatality).
Many parts of US (Georgia, California and Arizona) ?Canada, Australia, Tiawan, Germany, Netherlands, Spain
2 Brits self-isolating at home for 45 days
One woman (non-passenger) in Netherlands being assessed
KLM stewardess, (symptomatic) is in an isolation ward at an Amsterdam hospital
Anchored (not docked) in Tenerife
Passengers confined to small rooms
Two tropical disease doctors have boarded
No rats found on board
History
Gene Hackman and Arakawa, March 2025, New Mexico
Korean haemorrhagic fever (3,000 cases, 1950 - 1953)
Virus isolated 1976
Hanton river area SK
Andes strain of hantavirus
Endemic in Argentina, host is long-tail pygmy rice rat
Andes human to human has been documented in the past
WHO
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/hantavirus
CDC
https://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/about/index.html
UKHSA
https://ukhsa.blog.gov.uk/2026/05/05/what-is-hantavirus-how-is-it-transmitted-and-what-are-the-symptoms/
European
https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/hantavirus-infection
Mayo
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hantavirus-pulmonary-syndrome/symptoms-causes/syc-20351838
JAMA
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2834395
“Seoul virus”, (Seoul Olympics)
Affects the kidneys rather than the lungs in humans
Found in wild brown rats worldwide (very rarely, pet rats)
Not transmitted from person-to-person
Isolated incidents since 2012.
Transmission to humans
Mainly through contact with infected rodents,
and their waste products.
Breathing in contaminated particles, dried urine, droppings, or saliva.
Old dusty places, (sweeping a shed, barn, attic, or cabin)
Virus-containing particles become airborne and inhaled.
(Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome)
Touching contaminated surfaces — then to mouth, nose, or eyes.
Rodent bites, possible
Eating contaminated food, rare
Human-to-human transmission
Close contacts, household, people sharing cabins
US, CDC
Identified 864 cases (1993 - 2023)
Cases identified in 40 states,
most are from rural areas in the western US,
including California, Washington, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado.
Rodents
Infected for life, often asymptomatic
Clusters on infection in some breeding areas
Incubation
Typically, 1 to 8 weeks
Pathology
Immune reaction in the lungs inflammation pulmonary oedema
Symptomatic mortality 5% to 15% to 33%
Most people with antibodies don’t know they have had the disease
Hantavirus symptoms and severity depend on the specific virus causing infection.
Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome
Western hemisphere (including the US)
Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome.
Starts with flu-like symptoms
Fever, chills, fatigue, muscle aches, headache, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea.
About 4 to 10 days later, patients may develop cough and shortness of breath that can rapidly worsen
Haemorrhagic Fever With Renal Syndrome
Primarily in Europe and Asia
Starts with fever, chills, headache, back pain, abdominal pain, and nausea, and some may develop blurred vision, eye redness, rash, and facial flushing.
Later, internal bleeding, low blood pressure, and kidney failure.
Mortality’ from hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome ranges from 1% to 15%
Management
Optimise immunity
Limited general antiviral
Supportive
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/health-fitness/conditions/cold-flu/hantavirus-how-contagious-deadly-infection-outbreak-cruise/
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/07/global-race-under-way-to-trace-passengers-who-left-hantavirus-ship-before-outbreak-confirmed
