The Hantavirus - Did you Know?
On May 12th 2026, as the last passengers of the hantavirus-hit cruise ship from the waters of South America, left the ship, 3 more tested positive. (1)
Hantaviruses are a group of enveloped viruses carried by rodents. They maintain persistent infections in rodent hosts without apparent disease symptoms. In infected humans it can take around 3 weeks before symptoms appear.
Infections caused by hantaviruses are well documented. There appear to be about 40 members of the Hantaviridae family recognized to be pathogenic to humans. (2).
It appears that the Andes virus can be transmitted from person to person (3). It seems likely that person to person transmission might not only be via direct contact, or by a body fluid exchange, but also from the breathing in of the viral particles, emanating from an infected person.
Soon we’ll know if all infected cases are confined to the people from that particular ship. What this case does to reinforce our infection prevention procedures against potential viral threats. The WHO website has some resources.
Gama Healthcare has an excellent recent blog on the hantavirus. (4).
Clinell Universal is effective against enveloped viruses in a 15 second surface contact time, as tested by a registered independent laboratory in the tests EN14476, and EN16777.
The Clinell Hand Hygiene Wipes are effective against enveloped viruses in a contact time of 30 seconds in test EN14476.
References
1. www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjep7815835o
2. www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/details/hantavirus 6 May 2026
3. P.A.Vial et al, Hantavirus in Humans: A review of clinical aspects and management. The Lancet Infectious Diseases, vol 23, issue 9, September 2023
4. www.gamahealthcare.com/hantavirus-at-sea-why-the-recent-cruise-ship-outbreak-matters-for-ipc/
Please note this is the first insights blog post to be written by a guest blogger. We are looking to continue further guest blogging opportunities as part of our insights page and following IPC trends and research. If you are passionate regarding latest IPC information and would like to write a blog with us please do reach out!!
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