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Italy Monitors Four Over Hantavirus Fears After South Africa Death
🇵🇾 Paraguay /Health & Science

Italy Monitors Four Over Hantavirus Fears After South Africa Death

From ABC Color · (1h ago) Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

TLDR

  • Italian health authorities are monitoring four individuals who traveled on the same flight as a woman who died from hantavirus in South Africa.
  • The deceased woman had briefly been on the cruise ship MV Hondius before falling ill.
  • While a Dutch flight attendant on the same flight tested negative for hantavirus, health officials are exercising maximum caution, though the global risk is considered low.

Rome, Italy – Italy's Ministry of Health is actively monitoring four individuals who were passengers on a KLM flight that had a brief connection with a woman who tragically died from hantavirus in Johannesburg, South Africa. The deceased had been aboard the cruise ship MV Hondius before her illness became apparent.

Han llegar a Italia cuatro personas en el vuelo de KLM con escala en Roma en el que había viajado durante unos minutos la mujer ingresada en Johannesburgo y fallecida allí

— Ministry of Health of ItalyThe Ministry of Health confirmed that four individuals arrived in Italy on the KLM flight with a stopover in Rome, the same flight that briefly carried the woman who later died of hantavirus in Johannesburg.

This precautionary measure involves passengers who arrived in Italy on the flight, which had a layover in Rome. Health authorities in the regions of Calabria, Campania, Tuscany, and Veneto have been alerted and are implementing surveillance procedures based on the principle of utmost caution. The Ministry has confirmed that necessary risk assessment and coordination protocols are in place, in line with national and international health standards.

los procedimientos de vigilancia activa, bajo el principio de máxima cautela

— Ministry of Health of ItalyThe Ministry detailed that contact information for the four passengers has been shared with regional health authorities to activate active surveillance procedures under the principle of maximum caution.

Adding to the response, an Italian doctor from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) boarded the MV Hondius on May 6 to provide medical support. Despite these measures, the Ministry, citing assessments from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the ECDC, emphasized that the risk to the general population remains low globally and very low in Europe.

los procedimientos necesarios de evaluación de riesgos, vigilancia y coordinación sanitaria, en línea con los protocolos nacionales e internacionales

— Ministry of Health of ItalyThe Ministry confirmed the activation of necessary risk assessment, surveillance, and health coordination procedures, adhering to both national and international protocols.

This situation highlights the interconnectedness of global health and the importance of swift, coordinated responses to potential infectious disease threats. While the immediate risk in Europe is deemed minimal, the vigilance shown by Italian authorities underscores a commitment to public health security. The case also serves as a reminder of the potential for zoonotic diseases like hantavirus to emerge and the need for robust international cooperation in managing such health concerns.

bajo a nivel mundial y muy bajo en Europa

— Ministry of Health of ItalyThe Ministry relayed that risk assessments from the WHO and ECDC consider the risk to the general population to be low globally and very low in Europe.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Color in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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