An inmate at California’s notorious San Quentin prison has exhibited hantavirus symptoms, sparking concerns of a potential outbreak in a superspreader environment.
Hantavirus drew a significant amount of public attention after an outbreak infected several American citizens on the MV Hondius cruise ship traveling around the world.
The prison, Marin County, is still awaiting federal and state testing results to determine if the 38-year-old male inmate has hantavirus, ABC 7 reported.
There have yet to be any confirmed cases of hantavirus at the prison, officials said.
“The health and safety of the incarcerated population and staff remain CDCR’s top priority,” a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation spokesperson told the San Francisco Chronicle.
The prison, officially known as the San Quentin Rehabilitation Center, houses more than 3,000 inmates.
The facility where the sick prisoner was housed has been disinfected, and medical staff will monitor inmates and staff for symptoms indicative of possible exposure.
Officials at the prison believe the inmate’s sickness was not caused by person-to-person contact and no quarantine has been announced.
A prison official did not know whether the inmate was still being treated at the medical unit or had been returned to his regular housing facility, ABC 7 reported.
Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome is a rare but severe respiratory illness that can start with flu-like symptoms, sometimes including stomach problems, before rapidly progressing to life-threatening respiratory distress.
The fatality rate is about 30% to 40%, and there is no antiviral treatment, according to the The California Department of Public Health. Severe cases usually require aggressive critical care.
Four Californians exposed to the cruise ship outbreak were being monitored by the state for infection last month. Two of the them have already returned home and are being monitored by local public health officials, health officials said.
The other two were transported by federal authorities to a secure medical facility in Nebraska and are expected to return to California once health assessments are complete and safety arrangements are in place.
