Hantavirus outbreak sparks global health concerns and panic-driven speculation

Added: 2026-05-17

[00:00:00]Hunter virus outbreak is at the center of global interest. Meanwhile, at the forefront of the laboratory diagnosis of the Hunter virus outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship is the medical scientist heading the center for emerging zunotic and parasitic diseases at the National Institute for Communicable Diseases, the NICD. Dr. Jacolene Vea and her team spearheaded the laboratory diagnosis and lifted the veil on what the world now knows with certainty is the Andius variant of Hunter virus.

[00:00:36]>> It was not a working day. It was the workers day weekend. So it was the 2nd of May. I got a call. We were actually on a hike in Pritoria and I had a discussion with with one of the clinicians and they were telling me what they see and we were talking through the possibilities and we decided that we're going to be testing for um hunter viruses because this may be antivirus with pulmonary syndrome. So um got in the car, drove to Jerobic, uh got into the lab and started uh doing the tests and within a couple of hours we were able to give the doctors the results they needed to start actioning the management of the patient because the the results help helps the doctor to sort of hone in on what they're dealing with and how they should be dealing with the patient, but then also starting to communicate with the Department of Health so that we can trigger the containment responses for the bigger outbreak.

[00:01:29]This was an unusual and unique laboratory diagnosis on South African shores, yielding scientifically led informed decisions that steered the subsequent global public health response.

[00:01:43]So it's unusual because it's the first time that we're actually diagnosing a case of ha virus with pulmonary syndrome in South Africa. Previously we've had investigations for other antiviral diseases, mostly the ones that you will be finding in the European context. So this was a first for for South Africa but we were we always ready for the unlikely that's our business in this particular uh laboratory. So the investigation itself not necessarily unusual but the outbreak is certainly unusual a very rare condition and then the whole uh outbreak scenario on a cruise ship that's not been reported before either categorized by health experts as zunotic diseases. These are infectious diseases that can be transmissible from animals to humans including from rodents.

[00:02:33]>> So there are many different tanta viruses. I'll talk specifically about the Andes virus which is the virus that's causing the outbreak or has caused the outbreak on the cruise ship.

[00:02:43]So this is a virus that's transmitted by specific um rodents in different South American countries. It's not found in South Africa. It's not found on the African continent. It's transmitted from these rodents to people through uh close contact either through bites but also through contact with their infected feces, urine and um and saliva. And then with Andes virus unlike other hunter viruses you can see transmission from human to human but at a very low rate.

[00:03:14]It's not a highly infectious virus. Some of the symptoms that have been associated with hunter virus may sound familiar to many people.

[00:03:24]>> So hunter virus initially presents very similarly to flu influenza. So typically you know viral infections that give us muscle aches. They can give you um headaches, fever. Some people might even have some gastrointestinal symptoms like abdominal pain and diarrhea.

[00:03:43]However, she cautions that the Andius variant is distinctively unique, describing vital factors that set it apart. What makes it very different from viruses like CO or influenza and then respiratory viruses we're used to is it's not as infectious. If we look at persontoerson transmission of the ha virus, it's generally prolonged contact and close contact. If you think of somebody sharing a household or partners in a household, um long prolonged periods just walking past somebody or being in the same room transiently is not how it spreads.

[00:04:20]>> She also elaborated on the case management of patients once hospitalized.

[00:04:26]>> There's no specific antiviral treatment for Hanser virus or the Andes variant.

[00:04:31]So treatment is really symptomatic and supportive. As soon as it complicates with respiratory disease, that's when you want to be in an intensive care unit, might require ventilation, oxygen.

[00:04:43]With sobering CO 19 lessons still fresh in the mind, the global health community has since intensified efforts to respond to health emergencies with more precision. So there's been a lots lots of lessons learned as well and we've learned from actually mechanisms that were set up and as you also do know that you know legislative instruments like for example we had the international health regulations that were amended of 20 that were amended based on the learnings from co we also had the pandemic agreement the first ever landmark agreement that was actually approved by member states last year of >> the IHR is a legally binding framework that functions as a global early warning system for countries to practice coordinated international response efforts to public health events and risks. For example, we had the IHR international health regulation focal point persons of the different countries that were actually now going having to sort of deal with the hunter virus itself. Then for example we had uh South Africa, Kabo Ve, the UK, the Netherlands because of course this was a a ship linked uh to company within the Netherlands itself. Um and you know the the European uh CDC and so forth. So all these coming together to be able to have a coordinated public health response. Of course, WHO provided the technical support to the uh South African uh government and specifically the National Department of Health.

[00:06:13]>> Health experts say the widespread misinformation regarding the Hunter virus outbreak coupled with public fears described by many people as reminiscent of the CO 19 pandemic are concerning and far from the truth. In South Africa, we don't have endemic hanta virus and one is always concerned that people are going to panic around um any rodents you thinking of, you know, guinea pigs and pets being returned because people are scared of of the hand virus. Not all rodents carry ha virus.

[00:06:45]>> It's nothing like co um it is not as transmissible as co. So what does that mean? Means it doesn't spread so easily.

[00:06:54]The myth about you know there's going to be lockdowns is not correct because we are not dealing with a a situation which has gone out of control and cannot be managed.

[00:07:03]>> Whilst the Hunter virus outbreak is alarming, health experts have emphasized that it is nothing like what the world experienced with the CO 19 pandemic.

[00:07:13]Zandza, SABC News, Johannesburg.