For many, news of a virus outbreak on a cruise ship immediately brings back memories of the COVID outbreak when the Ruby Princess sank in Sydney. In March 2020. Of the disembarked passengers and crew, 575 had covid.. The virus then spread through the community.
So it’s comprehensible that folks are concerned that passengers on the MV Hondius should be quarantined after possible exposure to Andes virus, the rodent-borne hantavirus.
However, the comparison with COVID only goes to this point. Andes virus is serious and authorities are in favor of a cautious response. But by experts, including World Health Organizationnote that it doesn’t have the features required to be the “next COVID”.
As of May 11, European health authorities What is the report? Nine cases have been linked to the cruise ship, including seven confirmed and two probable cases. Three deaths are reported.
Five are Australian and one is from New Zealand. Being brought back home Australia for quarantine and surveillance. The passengers will initially be quarantined on the Center for National Resilience near RAAF Base Pearce in Western Australia.
What you want to learn about Andes virus, the chance of transmission, and the way it differs from the virus that causes COVID.
How do hantaviruses spread?
Hantaviruses are a bunch of viruses which might be commonly transmitted by mice, rats, and other rodents. People often turn into infected after inhaling small particles of contaminated rodent urine, droppings or saliva.
Most hantaviruses usually are not known to spread between people. Andes virus is an exception. After initial spillover from infected mice, it’s Hantavirus only with well-documented person-to-person transmission.
But that does not imply it spreads between people. Further person-to-person spread is rare, but may occur in close contact settings comparable to households, between caregivers, during intercourse, or after prolonged exposure to crowded or poorly ventilated indoor areas.
It could be very different from SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID. SARS-CoV-2 spreads very efficiently through the air. People can infect others before they realize they’re sick.
Initial estimates suggested Each person infected with SARS-CoV-2, on average, transmitted the virus to 2 or more individuals who had never been exposed to it before.
Andes virus Can cause human-to-human transmission.but requires an ideal storm of conditions: symbolic people in crowded, poorly ventilated spaces with close contact over time. This was the case on the MV Hondius.
The difference in transmission capability is that SARS-CoV-2 caused the pandemic and Andes virus caused the one existing outbreaks.
What are the symptoms of Andes virus?
Early symptoms of Andes virus infection appear to be many other illnesses, including fever, headache, muscle aches, nausea and fatigue.
In some people, the infection may progress. Hantavirus pulmonary syndromea life-threatening condition during which respiration becomes difficult.
How long after exposure are you able to show symptoms?
WHO Recommends Individuals exposed to Andes virus monitor for symptoms as much as 42 days after last possible exposure.
It represents the outer limit of time between infection and the onset of symptoms. This doesn’t mean that folks are contagious for 42 days.
Australian authorities have announced that returning travelers will spend initially. Three weeks in quarantineWith further monitoring arrangements to follow.
Melbourne’s Doherty Institute will test using polymerase chain response (PCR), which detects the genetic material of the virus, and blood-based antibody testing, often known as serology.
A negative test soon after exposure is helpful, but not all the time definitive. If the virus remains to be incubating, there may not yet be enough viral genetic material or antibody response to detect.
How does a virus develop?
The longer incubation period reflects how Andes virus develops in comparison with SARS-CoV-2.
Symptoms of COVID often appear inside days since the virus replicates rapidly within the respiratory system.
Andes virus develops in another way. Acute disease is related to vascular dysfunction and an inflammatory response. Breathing problems related to complications Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome Viruses do in a roundabout way destroy lung tissue, but quite a delayed response of the immune system. This results in fluid within the lungs and difficulty in respiration.
How deadly is it?
Mortality rate Hantaviruses vary significantly between species.
European and Asian hantaviruses typically cause death in lower than 1-15% of cases, while hantavirus pulmonary syndrome from American strains, including Andes virus, can reach 50%.
For context, in 2025, eight countries across the Americas Reported 229 cases of hantavirus and 59 deaths. These are serious infections, but they continue to be rare events.
A virus doesn’t turn into a pandemic simply because it’s deadly.
Can Andes virus be treated?
There isn’t any specific antiviral drug for Andes virus. Health care for affected persons Focuses on close monitoring, helping them breathe and managing heart and kidney complications.
There isn’t any licensed vaccine to forestall Andes virus.
However, additionally it is excellent news how quickly the scientific response has come together because the outbreak began. Swiss laboratories quickly cooperated. Sequence the complete genetic code. The virus was recovered from a patient and made publicly available inside days.
This gave researchers all over the world a reference to check other cases. This may help with faster confirmation of suspected cases, while helping public health teams discover which cases are linked to the outbreak and which require monitoring or isolation.
The bottom line
The instinct to see one other COVID in every viral outbreak is comprehensible but on this case misguided.
Andes virus is dangerous to infected individuals, however it just isn’t a very good candidate for epidemic spread. It incubates slowly, is normally spread by close contact, and transmission appears to be more efficient when persons are symptomatic.
Andes virus is significant to manage but just isn’t a pandemic threat like COVID.