EU Dispatches Emergency Favipiravir Doses for Hantavirus Treatment
European Response to Hantavirus Outbreak
Initial Dispatch of Favipiravir
May 28 (Reuters) - The first doses of an experimental antiviral for hantavirus treatment are being dispatched to France, Spain and the Netherlands, the European Commission said on Thursday.
Selection of Favipiravir as Treatment Candidate
In the absence of a specific treatment for hantavirus, the European Medicines Agency identified favipiravir as the most plausible candidate for use under clinical trial or compassionate use protocols, the Commission said in a statement.
International Cooperation and Donations
• Fujifilm Pharmaceuticals in Japan donated 1,400 tablets of favipiravir, which France, Spain and the Netherlands had requested.
Emergency Measures and Ongoing Outbreak
EU Procurement and Preparedness
• The European Union is launching emergency procurement procedures to secure additional doses in case further hantavirus cases are confirmed in the coming weeks.
Current Outbreak Status
• Thirteen people so far have tested positive for hantavirus linked to a cruise ship at the centre of the outbreak. They are being treated in the Netherlands, France and Spain, as well as Switzerland, the United States and South Africa.
Hantavirus Background and Impact
• Rodent-borne hantaviruses can cause illness. The WHO estimates as many as 100,000 human cases occur globally each year.
• The virus can be deadly, though severity depends on the strain and it does not easily pass from person to person.
• Three people have died since the start of the latest outbreak.
(Reporting by Mathias de Rozario in Gdansk; Editing by Makini Brice and Barbara Lewis)
