- A suspected hantavirus outbreak aboard a cruise ship has claimed three lives and left other individuals ill.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) is conducting detailed investigations, including extensive laboratory testing and epidemiological studies, to understand the virus's spread.
- Hantavirus is primarily spread through contact with rodents or their urine, saliva, or droppings, especially when disturbed material becomes airborne and is inhaled.
- Symptoms, which can initially mimic the flu, include fever, chills, and muscle aches, and can rapidly progress to life-threatening conditions such as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome.
- There is no specific treatment or cure, but early medical attention can increase the chance of survival, with fatality rates for hantavirus pulmonary syndrome reaching nearly 40 per cent.
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