Hantavirus exposure among wildlife farmers in Vietnam: A warning for Southeast Asia

Wildlife farming is common in Vietnam, where people breed and trade wild animals for pets, food, and traditional medicine. By 2021, the country had around 6,744 wildlife farms housing 1.8 million animals across 371 species. Although these farms support many families, they also bring people into close contact with wild animals. This creates opportunities for zoonotic diseases to spill over into humans. A recent outbreak highlights the potential danger. The Andes hantavirus, which spreads between…