Hantavirus Infection, Recognition, Triage, and Modern Management

At the conclusion of this course, participants will be able to:

1. Analyze the exposure history of a patient with undifferentiated febrile respiratory illness, including recent travel to Andes virus endemic regions, outbreak-associated cruise or expedition exposure, and prolonged close contact with symptomatic persons, which should place hantavirus on the differential during the prodromal window.

2. Differentiate Hantavirus presentations (HCPS, HFRS, and atypical forms) from common mimics such as leptospirosis, influenza, and rickettsial infections on the basis of clinical, epidemiologic, and laboratory findings.

3. Implement current infection-prevention measures, public-health consultation, and time-appropriate diagnostic testing for a patient with suspected Andes virus based on compatible illness and epidemiologic risk.

4. Demonstrate evidence-based supportive care, monitoring, and escalation strategies together with appropriate occupational-health follow-up for exposed healthcare workers for patients with confirmed or suspected Hantavirus.

Hantavirus infection carries a 30–50% case fatality rate even with optimal intensive care, and the way it reaches clinicians has changed. This course covers how Andes virus and other hantaviruses cause disease; the prodromal and crisis-phase features that set them apart; common mimics such as leptospirosis and influenza; triage and infection control; and evidence-based supportive care. Drawing on the 2018 Epuyén and 2026 MV Hondius outbreaks, which demonstrated person-to-person transmission of Andes virus in close-contact settings, it centers on the recognition decisions made at triage and during the prodrome, when early diagnosis saves lives and protects healthcare workers. By the end, learners will be able to take a focused exposure history, place hantavirus on the differential early, distinguish it from look-alike illnesses, implement appropriate isolation and testing, and deliver or support evidence-based management.

This course addresses a specific gap: most clinical training still frames Hantavirus as a rodent-only, rural disease, leaving clinicians unprepared to recognize it in returning travelers, cruise- or expedition-exposed patients, and close contacts during the prodromal phase — exactly when timely history-taking, isolation, and testing change outcomes.

Most clinical training still teaches Hantavirus as a rodent-borne disease tied to rural environmental exposure. That framing leaves clinicians unprepared to recognize Hantavirus in returning travelers, patients with outbreak-associated cruise or expedition exposure, and close contacts of confirmed cases, especially during the prodromal phase when diagnosis matters most. The 2018 Epuyén outbreak in Argentina and the 2026 MV Hondius outbreak both showed documented person-to-person transmission of Andes virus under close-contact conditions, including healthcare worker infections when isolation was delayed. With a 30–50% case fatality rate, even with optimal intensive care, recognition cannot wait for crisis-phase findings. This course updates traditional teaching to match current epidemiology so clinicians can take the right exposure history, order the right tests, and isolate early enough to change outcomes.