Experts understand anxiety about hantavirus, but say it’s unlikely to be next pandemic
WHO says the Andes strain outbreak is unlikely to spread widely because human transmission is rare and mostly requires very close contact.
- On May 2, the World Health Organization was notified of a respiratory illness cluster aboard cruise ship MV Hondius; as of May 7, eight cases and three deaths linked to the Andes hantavirus strain had been recorded.
- Unlike other hantaviruses spread primarily through rodent contact, the Andes strain is the only one capable of limited human-to-human transmission, typically requiring prolonged close contact such as living in cramped cruise ship quarters.
- Infectious disease specialist Dr. Allison McGeer said Friday, "I am not losing sleep about this," emphasizing the virus lacks efficient transmission like COVID or influenza and poses minimal pandemic risk.
- Several Canadians have been instructed to isolate after potential exposure, while four additional Canadians remain aboard and will meet consular officials this weekend when the ship docks in Granadilla, Tenerife.
- International monitoring continues as the WHO describes cooperation among health agencies as effective, with officials maintaining that sustained human-to-human transmission risk remains low, preventing a pandemic scenario.
26 Articles
26 Articles
Hantavirus vs. COVID: The differences in symtoms, spread and treatment — and why we're not facing another pandemic
Three people have died and five other cases have been reported following a hantavirus outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship. The situation has drawn comparisons to the quarantined Diamond Princess cruise ship during the early days of COVID-19, but experts stress that hantavirus is very different from COVID and, notably, not a newly discovered virus. Here’s how the two compare, and why hantavirus is not going to become the next pandemic. …
COMMENT. The virus outbreak on the luxury cruise ship in the Atlantic is like something out of a disaster movie. But several things distinguish this event from the corona pandemic.
Luke O’Neill: Yes, we dread another pandemic — but here’s why there’s no need to panic over hantavirus
You may have noticed a virus is in the news again. I’m sure you know it’s called hantavirus, given the media coverage, which is being updated almost by the hour. In some ways, it’s surprising how much attention has been paid to an infection that has killed three people, with only five other confirmed cases so far.
The Toronto Star
The RecordExperts understand anxiety about hantavirus, but say it’s unlikely to be next pandemic
TORONTO - Infectious disease specialist Dr. Allison McGeer has lived and worked through SARS-1 in 2003, the H1N1 flu pandemic in 2009 and the COVID-19 pandemic, which began in 2020.
Winnipeg Free Press
Experts understand anxiety about hantavirus, but say it's unlikely to be next pandemic
TORONTO - Infectious disease specialist Dr. Allison McGeer has lived and worked through SARS-1 in 2003, the H1N1 flu pandemic in 2009 and the COVID-19 pandemic, which began in 2020.
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