Mayur MohtaHealth officials say extra caution is needed while cleaning spaces where rodents may have been present as inhaling dried particles from infected animals remains the most common way the deadly hantavirus spreads to humans.
Be Extra Careful When Cleaning Rodent-Prone Spaces
Cleaning closed, dusty, or rarely visited spaces can put you at serious risk of contracting hantavirus and health officials want people to know exactly why. Greece’s National Public Health Organization (EODY), which operates under the country’s Ministry of Health, has issued a pointed reminder about the dangers lurking in seemingly ordinary cleaning tasks.
“Special caution is required when cleaning enclosed spaces, warehouses, agricultural facilities, basements, or countryside homes where rodents may be present,” EODY’s press office stated.
How the Virus Actually Gets Into Your Body
The most common route of hantavirus infection is through the air not direct contact. When people disturb areas contaminated by infected rodents, tiny particles from urine, feces, or saliva get stirred into the air. A person then unknowingly breathes those particles in.
“The virus can remain infectious for a long time in dried contaminated materials which a person may inhale when they rise into the air as dust,” EODY officials explained.
This is precisely why disinfecting any space where rodents might have been present is one of the most effective prevention steps available health officials confirmed.
Deadly Outbreak on a Cruise Ship Puts the World on Alert
The warning comes at a time of growing global concern. A deadly hantavirus outbreak broke out aboard the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius traveling from Argentina to Cape Verde. Three people died. On Wednesday, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus confirmed that the number of confirmed hantavirus cases among passengers had climbed to 13.
The BRICS Times
Akshay Didwaniya
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