In the past few weeks, the Hantavirus outbreak has caused multiple deaths and attracted international attention. The World Health Organization has assessed that the risk posed by the COVID-19 cruise ship incident to the global population is currently "low".

The information image is a Xinhua News Agency photo of the exterior of the World Health Organization headquarters

The World Health Organization announced on the 11th that it has received a total of 9 reports of cases related to the "Hondius" cruise ship, of which 7 have been confirmed to be infected with the Andean virus in the Hantavirus family, and 3 have died. The latest confirmed case is a female passenger reported from France who disembarked and returned to France the day before. The confirmed cases are mainly infected with the Andean virus in the Hantavirus "family".

Regarding the question of why there are still new cases, Olivier, the head of the WHO Epidemiology and Analysis Response Team, explained at a Hantavirus social media discussion on the 11th that the incubation period of the Andean virus is relatively long, usually 3 weeks, and can reach up to 40 to 45 days. Even with strict prevention and control measures in place, it is still possible to see more cases in the coming days or even next week.

Due to the incubation period of the Andean virus, which can last up to 6 weeks, the World Health Organization warns that there may still be new cases of infection in the coming weeks. However, the World Health Organization's assessment still considers the risk posed by this incident to the global population to be "low" at present.

The European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention also stated that even if there is limited transmission among evacuees, the Hantavirus itself is unlikely to spread widely in Europe due to its difficulty in human to human transmission. In addition, there are no major rodent hosts in Europe that transmit the virus, which reduces the risk of sustained transmission of the virus locally.

According to health tips released by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, there are over 20 types of Hantavirus that can cause specific diseases. The clinical manifestations caused by different viruses vary significantly, mainly divided into hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome and Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Hantavirus infection generally does not cause human to human transmission, and daily social and public contact does not cause virus transmission.