Authorities bar docking at the port of Praia to avoid risk to the population after a possible outbreak of the disease on board; WHO records three deaths suspected of infection
A cruise, with a possible focus of hantavirus, was not authorized to dock at the port of Praia, the capital of Cape Verdeand the passengers will not be able to disembark as a measure to “protect the population of Cape Verde”the country’s health authorities reported.
“In coordination with other authorities (…), the ship was not granted authorization to dock at the port of Praia,” declared the president of the National Institute of Public Health (INSP), Maria da Luz Lima, to the public broadcaster Rádio de Cabo Verde.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Sunday three deaths linked to a possible focus of infection by a disease that can cause acute respiratory syndrome, on an Atlantic cruise.
The ship, the MV Hondius, traveled between Ushuaia, in Argentina, and the Cape Verde archipelago.
Suspicious deaths
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported this Sunday (3) three deaths linked to a possible outbreak of hantavirus infection on a cruise ship in the Atlantic.
“To date, one case of hantavirus infection has been confirmed in the laboratory, and there are five other suspected cases. Of the six people affected, three have died and one is currently in intensive care in South Africa,” the organization reported.
The virus is transmitted by rodents and can cause serious respiratory illnesses, with a risk of fatal outcome.
“Although it is rare, the hantavirus can be transmitted from one person to another and cause serious respiratory diseases”, indicated the WHO.
What is hantavirus?
According to the Ministry of Health, the Hantavirus is an acute viral zoonosis which, in Brazil, manifests itself mainly in the form of Hantavirus Cardiopulmonary Syndrome (HCPS), a serious condition that can compromise the respiratory and cardiovascular system.
The virus belongs to the Hantaviridae family and its natural reservoirs are wild rodents, which eliminate the infectious agent through urine, feces and saliva without showing symptoms throughout their lives.
Transmission to humans occurs, in most cases, through inhalation of contaminated aerosols from the excreta of these animals. It can also happen through direct contact with mucous membranes. — such as eyes, mouth and nose —, due to skin injuries or rodent bites. Although rare, transmission between people has already been recorded in countries such as Argentina and Chile, associated with a specific type of virus.
*With information from AFP
