Officials have confirmed that the Andes strain of the Hantavirus has been found on the MV Hondius cruise ship and is highly deadly. It is endemic to South America and has killed 40 per cent of people.
In recent times, there's been a panic rising across the seas due to the discovery of the Andes strain on the cruise, which is spreading among people in close contact, in patients linked to the deadly outbreak on a Dutch cruise ship.
The MV Hondius will reach Spain's Tenerife in a few days, alarming countries around the world after the death of three travellers due to the Hanta virus. Another 3 members who have been affected have been evacuated from the cruise.
Of the 150 passengers on board the MV Hondius, eight cases have been reported, according to the World Health Organisation. Three have been confirmed as hantavirus through lab testing.
What is the Andes hantavirus strain?
There are many different strains of the hantavirus. Officials have confirmed that those on board the MV Hondius have been identified as infected with the Andes hantavirus strain. This virus, carried by rodents, can be transmitted from person to person.
The mode of transmission from one person to another is through contaminated rodent droppings, urine, or saliva, not through casual human contact. Roger Hewson at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine stated that hantavirus is easily transmitted between people.
How is the Hantavirus transmitted to humans?
Usually, a human is infected after coming into contact with rodent faeces, but doesn't pass it on. However, that's not the case with the Andes strain. It can spread between people, potentially sparking outbreaks. But this time, the Argentine officials believe that it is due to the couple who died between April 11 and May 2 on the ship.
Authorities suspect that individuals contracted hantavirus while participating in a bird-watching event in Ushuaia in mid-March. They likely boarded the MV Hondius, which set off on its 35-day expedition from the Argentine port on March 20.
Initially, the Dutch man experienced illness on April 6, with symptoms including a fever, headache, abdominal pain, and diarrhoea. He suffered from acute respiratory distress and passed away on April 11, but the connection to the rare hantavirus wasn't established until several weeks later.
His body was kept on board for two weeks, during which his wife also fell ill. On April 25, she travelled with her husband's remains to South Africa, where she subsequently died in a hospital in Johannesburg. This incident is considered the source of the spreading infection.
Dr Gustavo Palacios states that the virus is very short. It just takes a day to spread and infect a person. Its peak of infectiousness is on the day they develop a fever. According to some research, the virus can spread through prolonged contact with an infected person.
Impact of the Andes hantavirus strain in people
The Andes hantavirus is endemic to South America, including Argentina, where the ship departed on April 1. Dr Gustavo Palacios, a microbiologist at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, claims there is little understanding of how to handle the virus. He also states that viruses like these were not new and that we have a long history of viruses.
According to some research, the Andes virus may be uniquely resistant to the antiviral components of human saliva that seem to neutralise other strains before they can spread. The hantavirus is generally considered a dead-end infection.
Is it the next pandemic era?
The primary question has revolved around the countries: Is hantavirus the next pandemic virus after COVID-19? The current situation on the cruise will make history repeat itself in the worst way. Time is the only answer to all these questions.
However, the WHO notes that the cases of hantavirus can't be compared to the coronavirus outbreak. Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO's top epidemic expert, said: This is not the next COVID, but it is a serious infectious disease. Most people will never be exposed to this.
Even Steven Bradfute, an immunologist and hantavirus researcher at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Centre, also agreed with this assessment. In a National Geographic report, he states that the hantavirus is poorly transmitted. Even if it is super dangerous, the range of spreading is very low.
