Hantavirus Outbreak Holds at 13 Cases, Who Says

(MENAFN) The global hantavirus case count reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) remains unchanged at 13, with no additional fatalities recorded in more than a month, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus confirmed Saturday.

"The number of cases reported to WHO remains 13, including three deaths," Tedros wrote on the US social media platform X.

He noted that no further deaths had been reported to the UN agency in over a month, adding that WHO remains in close coordination with governments where patients are receiving treatment or where passengers and crew members are being held in quarantine.

Hantaviruses are a family of rodent-borne pathogens capable of causing severe illness in humans. Most strains are tied to specific rodent species and do not transmit between people. However, the strain at the center of the current outbreak — the Andes virus — is capable of human-to-human transmission through prolonged close contact, particularly in enclosed spaces.

The outbreak was traced to passengers aboard a cruise voyage, triggering a wave of health monitoring and containment measures after multiple infections were identified during and shortly after the trip. The virus drew global attention when a 70-year-old Dutch passenger fell ill on April 6 aboard the Dutch-flagged MV Hondius, five days after the vessel departed from Ushuaia in southern Argentina.

Tedros confirmed that WHO continues to closely monitor developments and maintain active coordination with all national authorities engaged in the response.

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