Prepare for more hantavirus cases: WHO chief tells countries
What's the story
World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has urged nations to prepare for more hantavirus cases. The virus was first detected on the MV Hondius cruise ship, which was sailing from Argentina to Cape Verde. Three passengers died from the virus, while nine cases of the Andes variant have been confirmed, including a French woman and a US national evacuated from the ship.
Health update
Spanish patient stable, French woman critical
According to Paris authorities, the French woman who contracted the virus had the most severe form of the disease and was placed on a ventilator. Spanish authorities have confirmed that one of the 14 Spaniards evacuated from the ship has tested positive for hantavirus and is stable with mild symptoms. Tedros thanked Spain for its "compassion and solidarity" in handling the situation and urged adherence to WHO guidelines, including a 42-day quarantine period and constant monitoring of high-risk contacts.
WHO
Possible we might see more cases
"At the moment, there is no sign that we are seeing the start of a larger outbreak, but of course the situation could change and, given the long incubation period of the virus, it's possible we might see more cases in the coming weeks," Ghebreyesus told a press conference in Madrid on Tuesday.
Precautionary measures
French patient on artificial lung
Health officials in Paris announced late Tuesday that the French patient had been sent to critical care due to "the most severe form of cardiopulmonary presentation." Dr. Xavier Lescure told reporters that the 65-year-old had pre-existing conditions but provided no other information. "She is on an artificial lung and a blood bypass to allow her, we hope, to get through this stage," he stated.
Virus mutation
Strain yet to be fully identified
France's health minister, Stephanie Rist, said it is not yet known if the hantavirus strain involved in this outbreak has mutated. "We do not yet have the complete sequencing of the virus, which allows us to say with certainty today, even if we are rather reassured to date...that this virus has not yet mutated." The final evacuation flights from the Canary Islands landed in the Netherlands.
Quarantine measures
Hospital staff quarantined as precaution
Tedros, who was speaking alongside Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, stated that more instances were anticipated to emerge due to the level of interaction between passengers onboard the ship before the alarm was raised. He said individual countries were now responsible for their citizens after the evacuation, as that is what "we expect." A Dutch hospital has quarantined 12 staff members after handling urine and blood from a patient with hantavirus without proper protocols.