Man in China dies after testing positive for hantavirus – what exactly is it?

A man from China’s Yunnan province tested positive for Hantavirus on Monday. He died while on his way back to Shandong Province for work on a chartered bus, China’s Global Times reported. 32 other people have been tested, the report added.

Following his death, hantavirus became a trend on social media, with people panicking that it was another COVID-19 ready to cause a new pandemic. However, contrary to popular belief and WhatsApp university schooling us about it, let’s get a reality check about hantavirus.

Firstly, unlike coronavirus, hantavirus is not airborne. Humans who contract the hantavirus usually come into contact with rodents that carry the virus. “Rodent infestation in and around the home remains the primary risk for hantavirus exposure. Even healthy individuals are at risk for HPS infection if exposed to the virus,” Centre for Disease Control and Prevention said in its website.

Although HPS can’t be passed on from person to person, it can be contracted if someone touches their eyes, nose or mouth after touching rodent droppings, urine, or nesting materials, states Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fact sheet.

Among the early symptoms of the virus include fever, headache, muscle ache, abdominal pain, dizziness, chills and abdominal problems, such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea. About half of all HPS patients experience these symptoms. Late symptoms include lungs fill with fluid and shortness of breath.

Is Coronavirus And Hantavirus The Same Thing?

Hantavirus is a disease that affects both the pulmonary region, as well as the kidneys in the long run, medical experts have said. However, in an era where the coronavirus pandemic has created fear in the world, this case of hantavirus originating in China has resulted in the virus become one of the most searched trends on Twitter.

But how do you contract the hantavirus? It’s not transmitted from human to human, but more from rodents carrying the virus with humans. To put things in perspective, a human that comes in contact with the faeces or urine of a rodent carrying the virus is likely to contract the disease even if s/he is a perfectly healthy individual.

However, the symptoms are almost similar to coronavirus. Some of the symptoms includes fever, headache, muscle ache, abdominal pain, dizziness, chills and abdominal problems, such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea. About half of all HPS patients experience these symptoms. Late symptoms include lungs fill with fluid and shortness of breath.

However, the novel coronavirus and hantavirus are totally different, as coronavirus, as this New York Magazine article, explains is transmitted from one human to the other. The base of the virus is similar to a protein present in the lungs, which makes it easy for the virus to attach itself to the host thereby infecting the individual. There are also cases of animal to human infection, as well as human to animal infection. Studies suggest that humans contracted the virus from bats in China, while two dogs have been tested positive for coronavirus after interacting with humans, it was reported.