A few hours after announcing the evacuation of three suspected hantavirus cases to the Netherlands, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed on Wednesday a case linked to a cruise ship in Switzerland, bringing to eight, the total number of reported cases.
The WHO said a passenger on the MV Hondius cruise ship is currently hospitalised in Zurich after a confirmed infection with the Andes virus, a strain of hantavirus found in South America.
This announcement marks a development in the health situation a few hours after an initial statement in which the WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, reported the evacuation of three suspected patients to the Netherlands. “Three patients suspected of having
hantavirus have just been evacuated from the ship and are en route to receive medical treatment in the Netherlands,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated earlier on the social media platform X, specifying that the operation was carried out in coordination with the WHO, the ship’s operator, and the authorities of Cabo Verde, the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands.
According to the WHO, the patient hospitalised in Switzerland presented himself at the hospital after responding to an email sent to the ship’s passengers informing them of the ongoing health situation.
The UN organisation indicated that the virus was confirmed by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases in South Africa and the Geneva University Hospitals (HUG), with support from the Pasteur Institute in Dakar, Senegal, and the National Administration of Laboratories and Health Institutes (ANLIS) in Argentina.
As of May 6, eight cases had been identified, three of which were laboratory-confirmed as hantavirus infections.
“In accordance with the International Health Regulations, WHO is working with the countries concerned to support international contact tracing to ensure that potentially exposed individuals are monitored and that any further spread is limited,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
WHO is also continuing health surveillance of the passengers and crew of the MV Hondius, as well as those who have already disembarked, in collaboration with the ship’s operators and relevant national authorities.
Despite these developments, the WHO chief gave assurances that “the overall risk to public health remains low.”
Hantavirus is a rare viral disease usually transmitted to humans by infected rodents through the
inhalation of contaminated particles from their droppings, urine, or saliva. Some strains, including the Andes virus, can, in rare cases, lead to human-to-human transmission.
AC/Sf/fss/as/APA