Some Californians, along with residents of at least two other states, are being monitored for possible hantavirus infections following a deadly outbreak on a luxury cruise ship.
Public health agencies in California, Arizona, and Georgia are monitoring residents who were aboard the MV Hondius cruise but have since returned home, The New York Times reported. None of the people being monitored has shown signs of illness, according to the Times.
In an emailed statement, Grant Boyken, a spokesperson for the California Department of Public Health, said the department was notified that California residents were aboard the cruise ship with other passengers who were infected with hantavirus.
“We are coordinating with local health officials, as needed, to monitor returning travelers,” Boyken said. “There is no information that the California residents are ill or infected.”
Boyken said the department could not disclose any additional information about the traveler “to protect patient privacy.”
“At this time, the risk to public health in California is low,” Boyken said.
The Georgia Department of Public Health is monitoring two residents, the agency said in a statement to USA TODAY on May 6.
“The individuals are currently in good health and show no signs of infection. They are following current recommendations from CDC,” the Georgia DPH said in the statement.
The Times and Reuters reported that the Arizona Department of Health Services was notified about a resident who had been aboard the MV Hondius, a cruise ship operated by the Netherlands-based operator Oceanwide Expeditions.
USA TODAY has reached out to the Arizona Department of Health Services for comment.
What is hantavirus?
Hantavirus typically spreads through contact with the urine, feces, or saliva of infected rodents, and human-to-human transmission is uncommon.
“Exposure typically occurs during activities such as cleaning buildings with rodent infestations, though it may also occur during routine activities in heavily infested areas,” according to the World Health Organization.
Those who are infected with hantavirus typically experience headache, dizziness, chills, fever, myalgia, and gastrointestinal problems, such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain, followed by the sudden onset of respiratory distress and hypotension, according to health officials. Symptoms typically appear between two and four weeks after initial exposure.
“Hantavirus infections are relatively uncommon globally,” according to the World Health Organization.
Human cases are most common in rural settings, “such as forests, fields, and farms, where rodents are present, and opportunities for exposure are greater,” health officials said.
3 infected with hantavirus die in cruise ship outbreak
The ship, which had nearly 150 people on board from 23 nations, departed from Argentina on April 1 and made multiple stops across the Atlantic Ocean, including mainland Antarctica, South Georgia, Nightingale Island, Tristan da Cunha, Saint Helena, and Ascension Island, according to the World Health Organization.
“The extent of passenger contact with local wildlife during the voyage, or prior to boarding in Ushuaia, remains undetermined,” health officials said.
Since its departure, three people — a Dutch couple and a German national — have died in the outbreak, according to health officials. Three others were evacuated from the ship on May 6.
Earlier, on May 6, health officials said an eighth hantavirus-linked case was identified among passengers aboard the cruise ship. Three of the cases were confirmed by laboratory testing.
CDC ‘closely monitoring the situation’
In a May 6 statement, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the “administration is closely monitoring the situation with U.S. travelers onboard the M/V Hondius cruise ship with confirmed hantavirus.”
“At this time, the risk to the American public is extremely low,” the CDC said in the statement. “We urge all Americans aboard the ship to follow the guidance of health officials as we work to bring you home safely.”
The ship is expected to dock in Tenerife, Spain, in the Canary Islands, within three days, the country’s Health Minister, Monica Garcia, said, adding that those still on board were not presenting any symptoms of the disease. Once in Tenerife, if they are still healthy, all non-Spanish citizens will be repatriated to their countries, according to Garcia.
The 14 Spanish passengers will be quarantined in a military hospital in Madrid, Garcia said. The duration of the quarantine will depend on when they were exposed to the virus, she said, adding that it has a 45-day incubation period.
Contributing: Melina Khan, Eve Chen, and Nathan Diller, USA TODAY; Reuters
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Californians among those monitored after deadly hantavirus outbreak
Reporting by Daniella Segura and Thao Nguyen, USA TODAY NETWORK / Palm Springs Desert Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
