Hantavirus disaster averted by UKOTs programme, doctor says
8 reported
A doctor involved in the response to a hantavirus outbreak on the MV Hondius has written to The Guardian to argue that the real reason a global disaster was averted was the UK Overseas Territories (UKOTs) programme. Dr Matthew Dryden, a consultant in infection for the UKOTs programme at the UK Health Security Agency, said the programme supports health services in all UKOTs. He stated that an astute doctor on Ascension Island recognised a cluster of cases on the MV Hondius when a sick passenger was brought ashore for treatment. Newly developed diagnostic equipment on the island excluded common causes, and a meeting across continents involving the UKOT programme infection doctor, the ship company medical adviser, and a colleague in South Africa led to the diagnosis of hantavirus. Dr Dryden said this alerted the World Health Organization and national public health organisations, and without it the ship would have sailed on to Cape Verde, potentially spreading the outbreak. The letter also noted that the writer, Dr Brian Jones, raised concerns about unequal access to public health measures for vulnerable groups such as the Batwa pygmies in Uganda fighting the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola.
What’s reported
Dr Matthew Dryden wrote to The Guardian to correct what he saw as a failure in a previous article to recognise the real reason a hantavirus disaster was averted.
The UKOTs programme is funded by the Foreign Office and managed by the UK Health Security Agency.
An astute doctor on Ascension Island recognised a cluster of cases on the MV Hondius when a sick passenger was brought ashore.
Newly developed diagnostic equipment on Ascension Island excluded common causes.
A meeting across continents between Ascension, the UKOT programme infection doctor, the ship company medical adviser, and a colleague in the National Institute for Communicable Diseases in South Africa led to the hantavirus diagnosis.
The diagnosis alerted the World Health Organization and national public health organisations.
Without this, the ship would have sailed on to Cape Verde, and passengers incubating hantavirus would have disembarked and travelled home.
Dr Brian Jones also wrote, noting that the Batwa pygmies in Uganda are fighting the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is no approved vaccine or specific treatment.
Key figures
Dr Matthew Dryden, consultant in infection, UKOTs programme, UKHSA
Dr Brian Jones, Yarcombe, Devon
Sources: The Guardian
