As the world is taken by the coronavirus outbreak a number of ailments are rearing their ugly heads. Cases of bird flu and influenza have been reported in other nations and India. A guy from China has tested positive.
What is Hantavirus?
As per the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), hantaviruses are a group of viruses that are spread mainly by rats/rodents and can cause various diseases in humans.
This can cause hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS).
Does Hantavirus Travel in the Air?
The straight answer is NO. And it’s a piece of good news for us. The disease is not airborne, which means it can’t transmit through the air, as per CDC.
To Whom Hantavirus Spreads?
Hantavirus can only spread to men if they come in close contact with urine, feces, and saliva of rats/rodents and less frequently by a bite from an infected host.
China’s Global Times posted on Twitter that the man from the Yunnan area died while on his going back to the Shandong area for work on a bus on Monday. The 32 other people on the bus were also tested for the virus.
Symptoms of hantavirus
Early symptoms of HPS (hantavirus pulmonary syndrome) include fatigue, fever, and muscle aches, along with headaches, dizziness, chills and abdominal problems.
If left untreated, it can lead to coughing and shortness of breath and can be fatal, with a mortality rate of 38 percent, as per CDC.
While the initial symptoms of HFRS too remain the same, it can cause low blood pressure, acute shock, vascular leakage, and acute kidney failure.
HPS can’t be passed on from person to person, while HFRS transmission between people is extremely rare.
As stated by the CDC, rodent population control is the primary strategy for preventing hantavirus infections.