The World Health Organization (WHO) has updated information on hantaviruses, a rare group of rodent-borne viruses that can cause severe illness in humans, including potentially fatal lung and kidney complications, with fatality rates up to 50 percent.

• Hantaviruses are zoonotic, primarily spread by rodents through inhaling virus particles from dried urine, droppings, or saliva.
• The WHO highlights two main diseases: Hantavirus Cardiopulmonary Syndrome (HCPS) in the Americas and Haemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome (HFRS) in Europe and Asia.
• While generally rare globally, infections can be serious, and diagnosis is challenging due to early symptoms mimicking other illnesses; there is currently no licensed antiviral treatment or approved vaccine.