The World Health Organization has urged countries to prepare for more hantavirus cases, as a French woman who contracted the virus on the MV Hondius remains on a ventilator in intensive care in Paris. The 65-year-old patient has the most severe form of the disease, according to health officials, who said she has pre-existing conditions and is being treated with an artificial lung and blood bypass.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference in Madrid on Tuesday that while there is no sign of a larger outbreak, the situation could change due to the virus's long incubation period. He thanked Spain for its compassion in taking in the stricken cruise ship, which was sailing from Argentina to Cape Verde when three passengers died from the Andes variant of hantavirus.
The WHO has confirmed nine cases of the virus, including a US national and a Spanish patient who tested positive after being evacuated. The Spanish health ministry said the Spanish patient is stable with mild symptoms. Tedros noted that more cases are likely due to the high level of interaction among passengers before infection prevention measures were implemented.
The UK Health Security Agency announced that 10 people from remote South Atlantic islands connected to the outbreak will be brought to the UK as a precaution. Meanwhile, 20 British nationals from the MV Hondius, along with a German resident and a Japanese passenger, are preparing to leave isolation at Arrowe Park hospital in Wirral.
