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Hantavirus live updates: WHO hunts for source of virus
The overall public risk remains low, the WHO said.
The total number of confirmed and probable cases of hantavirus of those who were onboard the MV Hondius cruise ship stands at 10, including two people confirmed to have died from the virus and one person who remains suspected to have died from the virus.
No cases of Andes hantavirus have been confirmed in the U.S. The eighteen American ship passengers are being monitored at the quarantine unit at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
Key Headlines
- Health officials in Washington state tracking hantavirus case unrelated to cruise ship
- 2 cruise ship passengers originally in Atlanta now at Nebraska quarantine facility
- Suspected hantavirus case at upstate New York high school, not linked to cruise ship
- US has no cases of Andes hantavirus
- WHO hunts for hantavirus source
- American doctor who initially tested positive says further testing shows 'no evidence that I've had hantavirus'
What is hantavirus and how does it spread?
Here's what you need to know about hantavirus including what it is, how it spreads, how it's treated and if there are any prevention methods:
What is hantavirus?
Hantaviruses are a family of viruses that can cause serious illnesses and death, according to the CDC.
How does hantavirus spread?
Hantaviruses may also spread from person to person, but that also is rare and only suspected for one subtype from South America, according to the WHO.
Read more about hantavirus here.
American in quarantine gives video update
Jake Rosmarin, one of the American cruise patients currently quarantining in Nebraska, provided an update on his Instagram page Wednesday.
On his third day of quarantine at the National Quarantine Unit, Rosmarin showed off his thermometer used to take his temperature, his breakfast and his daily routine.
"One thing I really want to emphasize is how kind everyone here has been. The staff truly want to make sure we are as comfortable and cared for as possible during all of this. They even asked me what Starbucks I’d want and said they were hopefully going to get one delivered to me again today," he wrote in the post.
-ABC News' Matt Foster
American doctor who tested positive speaks out from quarantine
Dr. Steve Kornfeld, a physician who was onboard the MV Hondius and stepped in when the ship's physician contracted the virus, opened up about his own quarantine in Nebraska.
Speaking to CNN, Kornfeld talked about being in the biocontainment unit at the University of Nebraska Medical Center after he too tested positive for the hantavirus.
After experiencing "night sweats, chills and mild respiratory symptoms, as well as more than two weeks of severe fatigue," he told CNN that he is experiencing no symptoms and is in good spirits.
Kornfeld added that the time is passing quickly and he's spending a lot of time on WhatsApp.
Minnesota monitoring person 'potentially exposed' to hantavirus, Health Department says
The Minnesota Department of Health said it’s monitoring the condition of a person who "may have briefly been exposed overseas" to another person who tested positive for hantavirus after being on board the MV Hondius.
"MDH is in contact with the person who was exposed," the department said in a statement on Tuesday. "They have been very cooperative, and we are monitoring them daily for symptoms. The person does not currently have symptoms. MDH will not release any additional information on the person to protect their privacy."
-ABC News’ Jessica Gorman
Potential hantavirus case in Illinois not related to ship outbreak, health officials say
The Illinois Department of Health said Tuesday it is investigating a potential case of hantavirus in a Winnebago County resident that is not connected to the MV Hondius outbreak.
"The resident lives in Winnebago County, has not travelled internationally, and has not come in contact with individuals associated with the MV Hondius outbreak," the health department said in a statement. "They are suspected to have acquired a North American strain of the virus while cleaning a home where rodent droppings were present."
The individual experienced mild symptoms and did not require hospitalization. The health department said it is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on additional testing to confirm if it is a hantavirus case.
Unlike the strain of hantavirus in the cruise outbreak, the North American strains are not known to spread from person-to-person, health officials said.