health
Hantavirus Was Already Known Since the Korean War: An Infectologist Explained This
The recent hantavirus outbreak detected on the cruise ship MV Hondius has once again brought to the forefront a virus known to medicine for decades. Although the health emergency has sparked international concern, experts recall that hantavirus did not appear recently nor does it represent a scenario similar to COVID-19.
TL;DR
- Hantavirus has been known and studied by Western medicine since the 1950s, dating back to the Korean War.
- The virus was named 'hantavirus' after the Hantan River in Korea, where early modern cases were documented.
- Initial symptoms observed were hemorrhagic fever and kidney damage, but other variants and manifestations have since been identified globally.
- The first major outbreak in America occurred in the US in 1993, followed by cases in South America.
- The Andes strain, first detected in Argentina in 1985, is the only known variant with evidence of human-to-human transmission.
- Unlike COVID-19, hantavirus does not cause widespread transmission and requires close, prolonged contact in poorly ventilated areas for human-to-human spread.
- Decades of accumulated knowledge allow for better understanding and more precise public health measures.
- International authorities are monitoring potential cases related to the MV Hondius cruise ship outbreak.