Mysterious deaths on Atlantic cruise: All about rare rat-borne Hantavirus turning voyage into nightmare

A Dutch-flagged luxury cruise ship sailing across the Atlantic and bound to Cape Verde (a country off the coast of West Africa) turned into a nightmare after three people succumbed to a rare and deadly illness, leaving one critically ill and three others showing similar symptoms on board.

Among the deceased are a Dutch couple and another person whose remains are still placed inside the ship.

The only confirmed case of the sickness is a Briton male (69) who is in intensive care in Johannesburg (South Africa).

The culprit Hantavirus has been suspected to have caused these tragedies. 

As per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it is a strain of viruses causing serious illness in humans and are spread mostly through infected rodents and their excretions.

Experts fear infected rodents running all over the deck, in and around the eatables might have caused the disease in people. 

As of now, there is little to no evidence if the virus can spread from one person to another.

What do we know about the patients?

As per reports, the cruise ship was travelling from Argentina to Cape Verde when the cases started to emerge.

The vessel was reportedly carrying 147 people, including 88 passengers and 59 crew members. 

As per the World Health Organisation (WHO), the vessel had departed Argentina on April 1 and had people from 23 nations.

On April 6, an adult Briton male started to show symptoms of fever, headache and mild diarrhea.

By April 11, gastrointestinal symptoms gave way to respiratory distress and the person died on the same day.

Reportedly, his body was removed from the vessel to Saint Helena (British overseas territory). 

His wife also developed similar symptoms and was evacuated to South Africa where she died in a hospital.

Reports suggest one more mortality and the body of the third person remains inside the vessel. 

As per BBC, the cruise operator Oceanwide Expeditions has flagged a Briton (69) who is in intensive care in Johannesburg (South Africa) and who is the first confirmed case of this rare disease.

There are two more crew members showing signs of sickness and need medical care. At this point, the experts are suspecting an outbreak in the vessel.

What do we know about Hantavirus?

Though rare, Hantavirus can affect people anywhere in the world.

As per CDC, people can get the virus if they have been in contact with infected rodents like mice and if they particularly got exposed to their urine, droppings and other bodily secretions.

Not extensively documented, it can also spread through a bite or scratch by the rodent.

The notorious viruses have not shown consistency in the symptoms and have affected people differently.

In the West, they are mostly associated with pulmonary syndrome, affecting the respiratory machinery of the body. 

The initial symptoms resemble those of a flu – fever, chills, nausea, gastrointestinal discomfort and pain. However, four to ten days after the onset of symptoms, the person starts to feel respiratory distress as fluids fill up the lung cavities.

If not clinically supported, this causes the lung to collapse and the person eventually dies.

In another variation, found mostly in Europe and Asia, the viruses can cause hemorrhagic fever with intense headaches and fever and some affecting the kidney function. This can result in blood pressure drop, internal bleeding, acute shock and renal failure.

There have been reports of individual cases who have suffered or died from the disease, including wife of Gene Hackman (American actor). So the infection is not entirely new. 

Treatment

As of now, there is no cure for disease caused by Hantavirus. Also, the symptoms are often confused with the flu.

People who are infected must receive supportive care from doctors and even require hospitalisation.

The human to human spread of the virus is still being studied.