In this week’s edition of InnovationRx, we look at the latest on the hantavirus outbreak, using quantum physics for metabolic MRIs, how AI can help fill prescriptions and more. To get it in your inbox, subscribe here.

How worried should we be about the hantavirus outbreak?

The virus spread through passengers and crew of the cruise ship MV Hondius, killing three people and infecting at least eight others. Eighty-seven passengers and 35 crew members have now been evacuated to their home countries, including 18 to the U.S., most of whom are now quarantining at a medical facility in Omaha, Nebraska.

But hantavirus isn’t like Covid-19. World Health Organization Director Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus told reporters on Monday that there’s “no sign we are seeing the start of a larger outbreak,” while acknowledging that the “situation could change.”

There are complications. For one, the incubation period of the virus is very long–up to six weeks–compared with 14 days for Covid-19. Then, too, those on the ship have now spread out to 22 different countries. That makes it harder to isolate patients and track the disease. That said, by and large nations are working to do just that.

Although hantavirus infections typically come from rodents, this strain spreads between people and has a 40% mortality rate. But unlike Covid or flu, it requires close contact to spread. That’s why experts think the risk of hantavirus rising to the level of a pandemic crisis like COVID-19 is low. An earlier larger outbreak, at a 2018 birthday party in Argentina at a birthday party in Argentina involving more than 100 people caused 34 infections and 11 deaths, but isolation and quarantine stopped further spread. While we may see more cases from the current outbreak, it’s unlikely to be as........

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