The Deputy for Health at
Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences said that, according to
reports from international organizations, hantavirus has not yet reached
the stage of a global pandemic, and there is no cause for concern about
its spread as long as health precautions are observed.
In an interview with ISNA, Dr.
Fariborz Imani described hantavirus as a group of viruses transmitted by
rodents, adding that it is rare but dangerous and can, in some cases,
lead to death.
He noted that the World Health
Organization has not yet declared a global pandemic or epidemic for this
virus. Fortunately, no cases of hantavirus infection have been reported
in Iran so far, but in any part of the world where rodents are present,
there is the potential for a hantavirus transmission cycle to emerge.
The head of the Kermanshah
provincial health center said that hantavirus usually manifests in the
human body in two forms. One is hemorrhagic fever or renal syndrome, in
which kidney damage, high blood pressure, bleeding, and in some cases
death may occur. The other is pulmonary syndrome, which presents as
severe lung involvement, shortness of breath, respiratory failure, and
similar symptoms; mortality in this form is higher than in the renal
syndrome.
Imani described sudden fever,
severe muscle pain, nausea, and vomiting as the early symptoms of the
disease, and said that severe shortness of breath, low blood pressure,
and kidney problems are warning signs.
He added that there is no
definitive specific treatment for hantavirus disease. Supportive care,
temporary dialysis in cases of kidney damage, hospitalization and blood
oxygen monitoring, oxygen therapy, ventilator support in severe cases,
and fluid and electrolyte management are among the most important
measures for recovery.
The Deputy for Health at
Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences said the incubation period of
the disease can be up to about six weeks, and added that the main route
of transmission is inhalation of contaminated particles, urine, feces,
or saliva from rodents. Direct contact with live rodents or their
carcasses can also transmit the disease, but it is rarely spread through
ordinary social interactions between people, such as those seen with
the common cold.