90-Second Read: Possible Illinois Hantavirus Case Not Linked to Outbreak on Cruise Ship

The patient's case is not related to the MV Hondius cruise ship Hantavirus outbreak, the Illinois Department of Public Health said. The risk of contracting Hantavirus of any kind remains very low for Illinois residents," the statement reads. As of Tuesday, May 12, there are 11 Hantavirus cases among passengers or crew, nine of which have been confirmed as the Andes virus, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. An Illinois resident is experiencing mild symptoms after possibly contracting a North American strain of Hantavirus after cleaning a home with rodent droppings. The strain that spread on the cruise ship, the Andes, comes from South America.

The agency confirmed that North American strains of Hantavirus "are not known to spread from person-to-person," unlike the Andes strain. This suspected patient marks the eighth Hantavirus case in Illinois since 1993. WHO's assessment continues to be that the risk to health globally is low." Three cruise ship passengers have died, including a Dutch couple and a German national, NBC News reported. Human-to-human transmission occurs following close and prolonged contact during the early phase of the illness, when the virus is more transmissible, according to the WHO. The patient has not traveled internationally, nor interacted with a Hondius passenger, the IDPH said.

The Winnebago County resident is believed to have a North American strain of the virus, the IDPH said in a statement on Tuesday, May 12. Winnebago County is about 90 miles northwest of Chicago. The patient is experiencing mild symptoms and is "not seriously ill." They have been tested, but results can take up to 10 days, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, per the IDPH. The Illinois patient was not hospitalized, unlike several Hondius passengers who have contracted the infectious disease. One person is still being treated in an intensive care unit in South Africa, and another passenger is in "very critical" condition in France.

They are suspected to have contracted the virus after cleaning a home with rodent droppings. He confirmed no one has died since May 2, "when WHO was first informed of the cluster of cases," Ghebreyesus said in a news release. A couple in Georgia is being monitored at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta after one of them started experiencing symptoms. The remaining passengers were taken to the University of Nebraska Medical Center/Nebraska Medicine Regional Emerging Special Pathogen Treatment Center (RESPTC) in Omaha, Neb.