Surabaya Increases Vigilance Against Potential Hantavirus Spread

Surabaya (ANTARA) - The Surabaya City Health Department (Dinkes) is increasing vigilance against the potential spread of hantavirus, although no confirmed positive hantavirus cases have been found in Surabaya to date.

The Head of the Surabaya City Health Department, dr. Billy Daniel Messakh, in Surabaya on Friday, stated that hantavirus is not a new disease as the virus has long been known in the medical world, transmitted from rodents, but cases are sporadic and have not caused a surge like other infectious diseases.

“Hantavirus is actually not a new disease. It has been around for a long time and is transmitted from rodents. To this day, there are no proven positive cases in Surabaya,” he said.

He explained that hantavirus symptoms often resemble ordinary flu or the common cold, so the public is urged to remain vigilant without excessive worry. According to him, the most important step at this time is to strengthen early detection and maintain immune strength.

As a form of anticipation, the Surabaya Health Department is encouraging the reactivation of body temperature checks at public transport entry points, such as airports, ports, and land transport routes, using electronic temperature scanners. This measure is considered important for early detection of individuals with abnormal health conditions.

In addition, the public is also advised to resume healthy living habits, from maintaining a balanced diet and getting sufficient rest to wearing masks in enclosed spaces or crowds.

According to him, several countries in Europe are also beginning to increase vigilance against infectious diseases by reusing personal protective equipment as during the COVID-19 pandemic.

On the other hand, the local government is still awaiting technical guidance from the central government regarding the hantavirus screening mechanism.

Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin is said to have requested official guidelines from the World Health Organization (WHO) regarding the implementation of such screening.