A new hantavirus case linked to the m/v Hondius cruise ship has been confirmed in Switzerland, bringing the outbreak to eight cases, including three deaths, according to the World Health Organization.
The case was confirmed Wednesday in a passenger from the ship who sought care at a hospital in Zurich, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. The patient is receiving treatment in Switzerland.
Tedros said the passenger had responded to an email from the ship’s operator informing passengers about the health event on board the Hondius, an expedition cruise ship that left Ushuaia, Argentina, on April 1 with 147 passengers and crew from 23 countries.
Swiss authorities confirmed the case as the Andes virus, a type of hantavirus found in South America. The virus was identified by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases in South Africa and Geneva University Hospitals in Switzerland, according to Tedros.
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As of Wednesday, WHO said eight cases have been reported, including three confirmed by laboratory testing. Three people have died.
The new case is a man in Switzerland who traveled on the ship and developed symptoms at the end of April. His wife has not developed symptoms but is being monitored.
The Hondius outbreak had already led to contact tracing for passengers and crew on a flight from Saint Helena to Johannesburg that was connected to one of the fatal cases. WHO officials said Tuesday that authorities were also tracking people who left the ship at different ports during the voyage.
The first known patient, a Dutch man, developed symptoms on April 6 and died on April 11. His body remained on the ship until April 24, when his wife disembarked in Saint Helena to accompany him.
The woman developed symptoms around April 23 or 24 and deteriorated during a flight to Johannesburg on April 25. She died on April 27. Another passenger later died on the ship after developing symptoms on April 28.
Other cases include a British man who was evacuated from the ship and is stable, as well as a crew member and the ship’s doctor who developed symptoms in early May. Details about their conditions were not immediately clear.
WHO said Tuesday it was investigating possible human-to-human transmission among close contacts on the ship. Hantaviruses are usually linked to exposure to infected rodents, but the Andes virus has been associated with limited person-to-person spread in previous outbreaks.