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Forty-five people were placed in home quarantine in France after being identified as high-risk contacts of a teenager diagnosed with the Andes strain of hantavirus, France Inter reported on Monday.
The patient, a Franco-Argentine teenager, was on vacation with his family in France and Spain when he became ill.
He first sought treatment at Limoges University Hospital, located in west-central France, on July 23, but the PCR test result confirming the diagnosis was not returned until Aug. 5.
During the two-week wait for confirmation, the teenager traveled to Normandy, a region in northern France, and visited relatives. He was in Spain when the diagnosis was announced on Aug. 6.
France's Health Ministry said at the time that the teenager had been isolated with his family and no longer had symptoms.
The 45 high-risk contacts included relatives and healthcare workers who treated the teenager. Ten staff members at Limoges University Hospital were also quarantined.
An additional 250 people considered low-risk contacts, including train and plane passengers and SNCF crew members, were asked to monitor themselves for symptoms.
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France's Director General of Health Didier Lepelletier said the diagnosis took time to confirm because the initial serology test was not sufficient on its own, and the results required validation by the national reference center.
The Health Ministry said on Aug. 6 that the case was isolated and had no link to patients from the MV Hondius cruise ship, where cases of the Andes strain had been detected in May.
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