Spain confirmed on Monday a new case of hantavirus among people who were in preventive quarantine in a hospital in Madrid, reports Anadolu.

“The positive case was detected during periodic diagnostic checks carried out on contacts who are under surveillance”, says a post by the country’s Ministry of Health on the American social platform X.

The case belongs to a close contact identified as part of epidemiological monitoring after the initial detection of explosion.

This is the second positive case among the 14 Spanish citizens evacuated to Tenerife by the luxury ship MV Hondius. The ship had about 150 passengers and crew members from 23 countries.

On May 11, Spain’s Health Minister Monica Garcia announced that a Spanish passenger aboard the cruise ship MV Hondius had tested positive for hantavirus shortly after authorities completed the ship’s evacuation operation.

Authorities said Monday that the person had already been under clinical observation and isolation since admission to the hospital, “in accordance with the protocols established by the Early Warning and Rapid Response System”.

After confirmation through PCR testing, the patient has been transferred to the High Level Isolation Unit at the “Gomez Ulla” hospital, where he will remain under specialized medical supervision and strict biosecurity measures.

“The patient will remain hospitalized under specialized medical supervision and with the biosecurity measures provided for this type of case”, said the ministry.

The health authorities emphasized that the discovery was made within an already activated control system.

“The detection of the case occurred within the isolation and control system already activated, so it does not change the risk situation for the general population”, the ministry added.

Hantavirus is a rare disease that is usually transmitted through infected rodents or their feces. However, the type responsible for this outbreak, the Andes virus, can also spread between people through close and prolonged contact, often indoors.

Source: prizrenpost