\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t A hantavirus outbreak aboard the cruise ship MV Hondius, which departed from the city of Ushuaia in southern Argentina in April, is causing international concern.<\/p>\n
Three people have died, and up to 10 passengers and crew got infected \u2014 eight cases have been confirmed and two are \u201cprobable\u201d \u2014 according to the latest update from the World Health Organization (WHO).<\/p>\n
While the WHO said they expect more people will test positive for the disease \u201cgiven the dynamics of spread on a ship and the virus\u2019 incubation period,\u201d they clarified that, for now, \u201cthere is no sign\u201d of \u201ca larger outbreak.\u201d<\/p>\n
But what is hantavirus? Where does it come from and how does it spread?<\/p>\n
If you never heard of this disease, here\u2019s a guide of what you need to know.<\/p>\n
What is hantavirus and where is it most prevalent? Hantavirus is a rodent-borne disease endemic in the Americas, meaning that its presence is persistent and stable through time on the continent. It is mainly present in Argentina and Chile.<\/p>\n
In Argentina, variants of the virus are present in provinces such as Salta, Jujuy, Entre R\u00edos, Buenos Aires, Chubut, Neuqu\u00e9n, and R\u00edo Negro.<\/p>\n
Other strains are also found in Europe and Asia.<\/p>\n
Is hantavirus contagious?\u00a0 Yes. Hantavirus is normally spread from infected rats to humans, causing the disease.<\/p>\n
Different types of rodents infected with any variant of hantavirus can spread it to humans when the latter enter into contact with the animal\u2019s droppings, urine or saliva. This can happen if a person accidentally touches or inhales particles from the infected animal waste.<\/p>\n
A common way to get the disease is spending time in a closed environment that has not been properly cleaned after the rat was present or not washing one\u2019s hands after touching an object that may have been contaminated with the virus.<\/p>\n
Can humans spread hantavirus? There is only one type of hantavirus that can be transmitted between humans: the Andes variant, which is the one found to have caused the cruise ship hantavirus outbreak.\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, it is far less contagious than other viral diseases such as COVID-19.<\/p>\n
A person can only spread hantavirus to someone else after being infected by a type of rat called rat\u00f3n colilargo (long-tailed mouse) \u2014 the only one that carries the Andes strain \u2014 which is only present in the Argentine provinces of Chubut, R\u00edo Negro and Neuqu\u00e9n in northern Patagonia, as well as southern Chile.<\/p>\n
The rat\u00f3n colilargo or long-tailed rat. Photo: World Health Organization Where did the cruise ship outbreak begin? This is still being investigated by the WHO and health authorities from Argentina and other countries.<\/p>\n
Even though the Andes hantavirus variant is endemic in some parts of Patagonia, it is not present in Tierra del Fuego, the province from which the MV Hondius parted on April 1.<\/p>\n
It is \u201clikely\u201d that the first two passengers of the cruise who caught the disease \u2014 a Dutch couple, who passed away \u2014 were infected during an earlier stage of their trip, when they visited northern Patagonia in Argentina and southern Chile, infectologist Elena Obieta told the Herald.<\/p>\n
People who got infected in the outbreak were found to have the Andes strain. The latest epidemiological bulletin from Argentina\u2019s Health Ministry said that tests showed that the passengers were carrying a variant of Andes hantavirus registered in 2018 in Neuqu\u00e9n province, one of the places visited by the couple.<\/p>\n
However, \u201cit is not yet possible to confirm the origin of the outbreak,\u201d it said, because patient zero was not in the areas where the Andes strain is endemic during the days in which the infection is estimated to have happened.<\/p>\n
The couple had visited Uruguay and other provinces in northern and western Argentina in the weeks prior to their cruise trip. There, hantavirus is present, but not the Andes variant.<\/p>\n
How is hantavirus spread between humans? Someone who catches the Andes strain of the virus may pass it on to another person through respiratory droplets, either by talking, kissing or generally being very close to one another.<\/p>\n
Transmission can also happen by inhaling droplets that may have remained suspended in the air in a closed room.<\/p>\n
A cruise, Obieta said, \u201cis a perfect incubator for any respiratory virus.\u201d<\/p>\n
It can also be transmitted to babies via their mothers\u2019 milk or, much less frequently, by rodent bites.<\/p>\n
The Andes variant is only found in rural Patagonic areas, where the long-tailed rat lives, and does not normally reach larger population regions.<\/p>\n
While it remains unclear for how long people can continue to spread the virus after getting infected, the virus is more contagious in the first 15 to 20 days, the infectologist added.<\/p>\n
What are the symptoms of hantavirus? Hantavirus infections in the Americas \u2014 including the Andes strain \u2014 cause a severe respiratory illness that affects the lungs and heart.<\/p>\n
Following an incubation period of usually 6 to 8 weeks, patients begin showing flu-like symptoms like fever, coughing, headaches and a sore throat. It can also cause abdominal pain and, sometimes, diarrhea.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt can rapidly evolve to pneumonia, breathing failure, and death,\u201d Obieta detailed.<\/p>\n
The incubation period is \u201cvariable,\u201d the expert explained, although it is \u201c32 days on average,\u201d meaning that the first symptoms generally appear a month after the initial contact with the virus.\u00a0<\/p>\n
People who suspect they have hantavirus should be hospitalized \u201cimmediately\u201d to attend to potential respiratory failure, the infectologist added.<\/p>\n
What is hantavirus\u2019 mortality rate? While hantavirus infections are \u201crelatively uncommon globally,\u201d in the Americas the disease has a 50% mortality rate, according to the WHO\u2019s hantavirus site.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In Argentina, the figure is generally between 30 and 40%.<\/p>\n
Between July 2025 and April 2026, 102 hantavirus cases were reported across Argentina, \u201cwhich is above the threshold of an outbreak,\u201d the health ministry\u2019s bulletin said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Thirty-three of them died, meaning the fatality rate was 32%, three times higher than in the previous season.<\/p>\n
Is there a vaccine or treatment for hantavirus? There is no specific treatment to cure hantavirus. \u201cEarly supportive medical care is key to improving survival,\u201d according to the WHO.<\/p>\n
There is no vaccine against hantavirus, meaning that the only way to avoid getting it is taking preventive measures in affected areas.<\/p>\n
How can you prevent hantavirus? Can alcohol kill it? Proper hand-washing is key if you\u2019re visiting places where the disease is present, especially while spending time in fields, forests, or camping sites and after handling firewood.<\/p>\n
Alcohol, diluted at 70%, can kill hantavirus, but the most effective method is using bleach.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you are visiting Patagonia, it\u2019s best if you clean your things with bleach,\u201d Obieta said. This includes cleaning groceries or camping tools, for example.<\/p>\n
The expert also recommends not leaving food outside and storing firewood in a way rodents cannot access it.<\/p>\n
Could hantavirus cause a pandemic? The international health community, including the WHO, agrees there are no chances of hantavirus spreading in a way that could cause a pandemic.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not another COVID-19. The current public health risk from hantavirus remains low,\u201d WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.<\/p>\n
People who got infected in the MV Hondius, as well as all passengers and crew who were in it during the outbreak, were quarantined and are being strictly monitored, so the chances of them spreading the virus are minimal.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat worries the WHO and the world is those who stepped off the cruise in Santa Elena Island without knowing there had been hantavirus cases in it,\u201d Obieta warned. Those passengers are being tracked down to reduce risks. Nevertheless, it is worth insisting that hantavirus\u2019 transmission rate is very low.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A hantavirus outbreak aboard the cruise ship MV Hondius, which departed from the city of Ushuaia in southern Argentina in April, is causing international concern. Three people have died, and up to 10 passengers and crew got infected \u2014 eight cases have been confirmed and two are \u201cprobable\u201d \u2014 according to the latest update from […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":64307,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6336,15280,16066,53],"tags":[6333,15351,16065,182],"class_list":["post-64306","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-argentina-101","category-hantavirus","category-hantavirus-outbreak","category-health","tag-argentina-101","tag-hantavirus","tag-hantavirus-outbreak","tag-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64306","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64306"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64306\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/64307"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64306"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64306"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64306"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}