Two hantavirus contact cases in isolation at Bordeaux hospital

A couple from Vienne are among the 22 hantavirus ‘contact cases’ recorded in France and have been isolated at a hospital facility in Bordeaux.

The couple will remain in the facility – the Pellegrin Hospital – for a minimum of 14 days while their condition is assessed, but this period may be extended.

The couple are currently not showing symptoms of the virus, but are undergoing a quarantine as part of emergency rules laid out in a decree at the start of the week. 

The location of one of the other contact cases was reported to be Concarneau (Finistère) by French media, with the man – who identified himself to authorities – subsequently being transferred to a hospital in Rennes.

Another contact case was confirmed to live in Juan-les-Pins (Alpes-Maritimes) and has been transferred to a hospital in Marseille.

Health Minister Stéphanie Rist announced yesterday that all 22 contact cases had been identified and tested for the Andes-strain of hantarivus. 

These individuals came into contact with a Dutch woman who was unaware she had the disease on one of two flights, between Saint Helena and Johannesburg and Johannesburg - Amsterdam.

“Among those who were first hospitalised, they do not have any clinical symptoms… there is no evidence of virus transmission within the country,” she said.

Five French nationals who were on board the MV Hondius cruise ship where the outbreak was first reported are isolating at a health facility in Paris.

Among them, one woman is seriously ill after testing positive for the illness.

Initial investigations and tests of passengers affected by the Andes-strain hantavirus indicate that the virus has not mutated, with Ms Rist saying authorities should be able to confirm this “with certainty,” in the coming days.

Health authorities were initially concerned that a mutated form of the virus could see the disease transmitted more easily between humans.