Argentine expert links cruise ship hantavirus outbreak to climate change
Argentine infectious disease specialist Hugo Pizzi has warned that climate change may be contributing to the spread of the Andes strain of hantavirus, after an outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship killed three people.
Speaking at the National University of Córdoba on Thursday, Pizzi said passengers aboard the ship were vulnerable because they were confined in an environment where contamination could spread more easily.
“It is a group of people who were at a disadvantage from a health point of view and confined in a place where contamination was easier,” he said.
Pizzi said climate change was affecting the habitats and movement patterns of rodents that transmit the virus.
Hantavirus is mainly spread through contact with infected rodents, especially through inhaling virus particles from contaminated urine, faeces or saliva. The World Health Organization said seven cases had been identified in the cruise ship cluster as of May 4, including two laboratory-confirmed cases, five suspected cases and three deaths.
Pizzi said the Andes strain is especially concerning because it can be transmitted from person to person, unlike most hantaviruses.
“Everything starts with the first link, which always begins with the long-tailed mouse contaminating a human being with its faeces, saliva and urine,” he said.
He added, however, that Argentina does not face a direct risk from the cruise ship outbreak because there is “no relationship between the journey and the territory.”
Three people have died in the outbreak; a Dutch couple and a German national. The MV Hondius, carrying nearly 150 passengers and crew, was heading toward the Canary Islands after being denied docking in Cape Verde.
On Wednesday, three people were airlifted from the ship to hospital in the Netherlands. Argentine officials are investigating a theory that the Dutch couple may have contracted the virus during a birdwatching visit to a landfill site before boarding the vessel.
Pizzi said authorities must trace the movements of infected people, assess the presence of rodents in affected areas and conduct broad epidemiological investigations to prevent further outbreaks. He said Argentina’s health system has the training and infrastructure to respond, but warned that climate change is creating growing public health challenges.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
