90-Second Read: Virology specialist addresses Hantavirus concerns: Cruise ship outbreak prompts international response

A deadly outbreak of Hantavirus linked to the Dutch expedition cruise ship MV Hondius has raised international concern after multiple passengers became ill and at least three people died. A total of 11 people around the world have had either confirmed or suspected cases of Hantavirus tied to the cruise outbreak, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Ph.D., said at a recent news conference. Health officials are taking the outbreak seriously because Hantavirus infections can be severe and because cruise passengers travel internationally. According to current reports, 18 Americans who were aboard the cruise ship linked to the deadly Hantavirus outbreak are now being monitored at specialized healthcare facilities in the United States.

Here are five important questions, and answers, about the current Hantavirus outbreak. The strain associated with the cruise ship outbreak appears to be the Andes virus, a Hantavirus found mainly in parts of South America, especially Argentina and Chile. Patient Zero (the likely index case) in the cruise ship Hantavirus outbreak has been identified as ornithologist Leo Schilperoord, whose passion for birds may have cost him his life. Hantaviruses are a family of viruses primarily carried by rodents.

One of those individuals developed symptoms; however, testing was negative for the Andes variant of Hantavirus. In the Americas, Hantaviruses can cause a severe disease called Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, or HPS, which affects the lungs and can become life-threatening. The current outbreak also highlights an important public health lesson from the past several decades: infectious diseases do not respect borders, and rapid international coordination remains essential when rare pathogens emerge unexpectedly. Hantaviruses may be rare, but rare does not mean insignificant, especially in an era of rapid international travel, ecological disruption, and increasing human interaction with wildlife reservoirs.

This stage can rapidly become critical and is often referred to as acute respiratory distress (also known as Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome). The CDC is issuing this Health Alert Network (HAN) Health Advisory to inform clinicians and health departments about a new cluster of Hantavirus disease cases caused by infection with Andes virus. One reason Hantavirus is dangerous is that symptoms may worsen suddenly after several days of what appears to be a routine viral illness.