SINGAPORE, 4 MAY 2026—Recent news reports have highlighted several infectious diseases incidents, including three tuberculosis clusters in Singapore; and a suspected hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean.
Here are responses to these cases by infectious disease experts from Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore.
1. Rodent control key to preventing hantavirus transmission
Please attribute the following statement to: Professor Ooi Eng Eong, Emerging Infectious Diseases Signature Research Programme, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
Hantaviruses are a group of viruses that are naturally found in rodents, including urban rats like the brown and black rats in Singapore. They are so named because the first virus in this group was discovered as the cause of Korean haemorrhagic fever epidemic among soldiers operating on the banks of the Hantan River during the Korean War. After that initial discovery, many other hantaviruses have been discovered in many different parts of the world, including Southeast Asia, Europe and the Americas.
Hantaviruses are shed from infected rodents in their excretions. When the droppings dry, hantaviruses can become airborne and be accidentally inhaled by humans. Alternatively, hantaviruses can also be transmitted from rodents to humans via contaminated food, rat bites and scratches.
Nevertheless, human-to-human transmission is rare. Infection can result in a wide range of symptoms and illnesses, from mild fever to haemorrhagic fever and renal syndrome (HFRS) and hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome is a lung disease seen in the outbreak on the Atlantic cruise ship.
There are many different hantaviruses and their propensity to cause disease in humans are different. Likewise, some but not all hantaviruses are also associated with severe human disease.
Research studies in Singapore have found Seoul hantavirus antibodies in rodents, suggesting that this specific virus is present in Singapore. Although Seoul hantavirus can cause HFRS, the risk of such severe disease is low. Most infections, unlike the more virulent Hantaan virus and Sin Nombre virus, would either be asymptomatic or only present as flu-like febrile illness.
Regardless of the type of hantaviruses found in Singapore, the method to prevent such infections is rodent control, not only in residential and eating places but also in ports and shipyards where rodents from elsewhere could be inadvertently introduced into Singapore. There is neither a vaccine nor antiviral treatment for hantavirus infection.
2. Tuberculosis cases in Singapore does not signal a wider outbreak
Please attribute the following statement to: Assistant Professor Shurendar Selva Kumar, Centre for Outbreak Preparedness, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
What is being observed in Bedok Central is not a sudden resurgence of tuberculosis, but a reflection of Singapore's advanced detection capabilities. Through whole genome sequencing—incorporated into Singapore's tuberculosis surveillance programme—health authorities have been able to identify genetically linked cases that would previously have appeared unconnected, confirming that the current cluster is related to earlier ones in the same area.
Thirteen cases across three clusters over three years is a localised public health concern, but it does not signal a wider outbreak and carries no pandemic potential. Tuberculosis is detectable, treatable, and curable. Transmission requires prolonged contact with an infectious individual—not incidental exposure—and all patients identified have been promptly treated and are currently non-infectious.
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