What Do We Know About “Hanta Virus” So Far – P1
What Do We Know About “Hanta Virus” So Far:
Hanta Virus Orthohantavirus (1976-2020)
An orthohantavirus (or hantavirus) is a single-stranded, enveloped, negative-sense RNA virus in the family Hantaviridae of the order Bunyavirales.
These viruses normally infect rodents, but do not cause disease in them.
Humans may become infected with hantaviruses through contact with rodent urine, saliva, or feces. Some strains cause potentially fatal diseases in humans, such as hantavirus hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS), or hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS), also known as hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS).
Human infections of hantaviruses have almost entirely been linked to human contact with rodent excrement; however, in 2005 and 2019, human-to-human transmission of the Andes virus was reported in South America.
Hantavirus is named for the Hantan River area in South Korea where an early outbreak was observed,[6] and was isolated in 1976 by Ho-Wang Lee
Symptoms:
Fever, cough, muscle pain, headache, and lethargy
characterized by a sudden onset of shortness of breath with rapidly evolving pulmonary edema that is often fatal despite intervention with mechanical ventilation and potent diuretics. The fatality rate is 36%.
Transmission:
The viruses that cause hantavirus hemorrhagic fever have not been shown to transfer from person to person, except for Andes virus.
can be transmitted by contact with infected blood and body fluids.
Half-Life Duration:
The viruses have been demonstrated to remain active for two to three days at normal room temperature, while ultraviolet rays in direct sunlight kills them within a few hours. However, rodent droppings or urine of indeterminate age should always be treated as infectious.
Epidemiology:
Hantavirus infections have been reported from all continents but Australia.
Treatment:
Ribavirin may be a drug for HPS and HFRS but its effectiveness remains unknown, still, spontaneous recovery is possible with supportive treatment.
