WHO Reports 13 Hantavirus Cases, Including Three Deaths, Linked to M/V Hondius

ByDental Info

The World Health Organization says 13 cases of Andes hantavirus, including three deaths, have been linked to travel aboard the cruise ship M/V Hondius as international authorities coordinate tracing and infection-control work.

The World Health Organization said July 2 that an outbreak of Andes hantavirus linked to the cruise ship M/V Hondius had reached 13 notified cases, including three deaths. Twelve cases were laboratory-confirmed and one was classified as probable.

All of the confirmed cases were among people who had traveled aboard the vessel, according to the WHO. The outbreak has involved multiple countries and territories connected to the ship’s route, making passenger identification and follow-up an international public-health task.

The WHO assessed the risk to the global public as low, while saying the risk was higher for people who had been onboard. The agency’s assessment does not remove the need to identify potentially exposed passengers and monitor for possible secondary transmission.

An international response

The M/V Hondius is a Dutch-flagged cruise ship. Passengers disembarked at multiple locations, including places connected to the United Kingdom, Tristan da Cunha, France and Spain, according to the WHO’s account of the response.

That travel pattern has required health authorities to work across jurisdictions rather than handle the investigation as a single-location outbreak. The WHO said it was coordinating international briefings, expert discussions and webinars focused on infection control and clinical management.

The response also includes an epidemiological investigation, laboratory testing, medical evacuation and international contact tracing. WHO officials have been developing guidance for passengers and crew, while authorities work to determine who may have been exposed and where follow-up is needed.

The agency described the situation as a test of the International Health Regulations, the framework used by countries to coordinate responses to public-health events that can cross borders. The practical challenge is especially significant when people leave a vessel and return to different countries before an infection is recognized.

What is known about the cases

The 13 notified cases include 12 laboratory-confirmed infections and one probable case. Three people have died. The WHO’s update linked every confirmed case to travel on the M/V Hondius, but it did not say that all passengers or crew members were infected.

Earlier in the response, laboratory testing in South Africa confirmed hantavirus infection in a patient who had been aboard the ship. The WHO said countries whose nationals had disembarked earlier were involved in the wider response.

Reuters reported that the ship carried nearly 150 passengers when it approached Tenerife and that experts were working on guidance for passengers and crew. The number of passengers aboard at that point is not the same as the number of people confirmed or suspected to have the infection.

What happens next

Health authorities are expected to continue tracing passengers and other contacts, conduct laboratory testing and provide clinical and infection-control guidance. Medical evacuation remains part of the response where required.

The WHO’s July 2 update did not establish whether additional cases had emerged after that date. It also did not provide a probability for secondary transmission or identify every affected passenger’s nationality and current location.

For people who traveled aboard the M/V Hondius, the higher risk assessment means follow-up remains important even though the WHO considers the risk to the wider global public low. The next phase will depend on whether contact tracing identifies further infections and whether testing finds evidence of transmission beyond people who were exposed during the voyage.

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