Hantavirus Outbreak in China: What You Need to Know

There is a tweet from China Global Times that a person from Yunnan Province died while on his way back to Shandong Province for work on a chartered bus.  He was diagnosed to have died from HANTAVIRUS.  32 other people on the bus were also tested.  Another virus, another pandemic?

A person from Yunnan Province died while on his way back to Shandong Province for work on a chartered bus on Monday. He was tested positive for #hantavirus. Other 32 people on bus were tested. pic.twitter.com/SXzBpWmHvW

— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) March 24, 2020

What is Hantavirus?

Let us refer this question to the Mayo Clinic:

Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome is an infectious disease characterized by flu-like symptoms that can progress rapidly to potentially life-threatening breathing problems.

Several types of hantaviruses can cause hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. They are carried by several types of rodents, particularly the deer mouse. You become infected primarily by breathing air infected with hantaviruses that are shed in rodent urine and droppings.

Because treatment options are limited, the best protection against hantavirus pulmonary syndrome is to avoid rodents and their habitats.

Is it possible to have a Hantavirus Pandemic

The quick answer here is NO.  Since they primarily come from rodents, the extermination of them is the main solution.  There was no major outbreaks of the Hantavirus since it was first known on March 2, 20900 in Panama.  Also, human-to-human transmission is not possible as per studies.

Last report of Hantavirus by the World Health Organization (WHO) is on 23 January 2019 in the Argentine Republic.

Do not panic and research well before believing that we will all gonna die because of more and more viruses.  Be healthy and live a healthy lifestyle.