Health authorities are monitoring a case of Andes hantavirus in Galicia.

The Ministry of Health has reported a case of Andes hantavirus in a Franco-Argentine citizen travelling in Galicia. The patient, whose usual residence is in Argentina, remains isolated in a hospital in Galicia. Health authorities have activated the epidemiological surveillance protocol in response to this infection.

A case imported from Argentina

The infection is thought to have occurred in Argentina, the patient's country of origin, rather than in Spain. According to information released by Europa Press and El Español, this is an imported case, with no other linked infections recorded to date. The risk of spread on Spanish soil is considered very low, according to the same sources.

Andes hantavirus is one of the most severe variants of this type of virus, endemic to the southern hemisphere. Unlike other strains, it can be transmitted between people, although the main route of infection is exposure to infected rodents. Typical symptoms include fever, muscle aches and headache, and in the most severe cases it can lead to cardiopulmonary syndrome.

The authorities have not specified the hospital where the patient is being treated, nor have they detailed his current clinical condition. Notification of the case follows the standard surveillance protocol for notifiable diseases with transmission potential.

The information available does not make it possible to determine how exposure to the virus occurred in Argentina or the patient's itinerary before arriving in Galicia. Nor has it been clarified whether he was travelling with companions or how much time has elapsed since symptoms began.

This case underscores the importance of epidemiological surveillance in international travel, but the known data do not point to a scenario of public health alarm.

Piece written and translated automatically from cross-checked sources in several countries.