Health authorities in British Columbia, Canada, have announced that a cruise passenger currently in isolation has tested presumptively positive for hantavirus. The announcement, made this past Saturday, comes as officials continue to monitor a cluster of cases linked to a recent cruise ship outbreak.
According to Bonnie Henry, a provincial health officer, the patient began experiencing mild symptoms, including a fever and headache, two days ago. Following their admission to a local hospital, a presumptively positive result was returned on Friday. The individual is currently being treated in isolation while awaiting final confirmation from a microbiology laboratory over the weekend.
The patient is part of a larger group of 10 Canadians currently placed in isolation nationwide due to the outbreak aboard the cruise ship MV Hondius. Of these individuals, four are undergoing a 21-day monitored isolation period in British Columbia, while the remaining six are isolated across Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec. It was further noted that the presumptively positive patient's partner has tested negative for the virus.
To alleviate public concern, Officer Henry emphasized that all healthcare workers involved in the patient's transfer utilized full personal protective equipment (PPE) and that none of the isolated individuals had come into contact with the general public. She reassured the community that the virus does not possess "pandemic potential" and urged against widespread panic.
The outbreak on the MV Hondius has already resulted in three deaths. Health experts note that the incubation period for hantavirus typically ranges from one to eight weeks, necessitating the extended monitoring periods currently in place for the affected passengers.
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Canadian cruise passenger tests presumptively positive for hantavirus
cgtn.com
