Hantavirus Lookout
Methodology
Sources & Methodology
Hantavirus Lookout is an independent public-data monitor. It summarizes reports from official public-health agencies and credible public sources so readers can quickly distinguish confirmed cases, deaths, suspected/testing records, and monitored contacts.
Source priority
- Official public-health sources: WHO, CDC, ECDC, PAHO/WHO, national health ministries, and state or local health departments.
- High-signal public-health reporting: CIDRAP, Eurosurveillance, ProMED, ReliefWeb/WHO items, and major wire or public-service outlets when official pages lag.
- Context sources: local health coverage, operator statements, and research reporting when they clarify response status without changing official counts.
- Community map data: ArcGIS/K. Panozzo tracker layers are used for map/feed visualization and are cross-checked against higher-authority sources where possible.
Classification rules
- Confirmed: reported positive/laboratory-confirmed infection.
- Deaths: fatal outcomes among confirmed or otherwise source-attributed outbreak records.
- Suspected/testing: symptomatic, probable, or pending records that are not confirmed positives.
- Monitoring: exposed contacts under quarantine, isolation, or follow-up. These are not counted as confirmed infections.
- Total Tracked: the sum of all tracked statuses above; it is not a “total cases” count.
Limitations
Public reporting can be delayed, revised, duplicated, or incomplete. The tracker uses cautious language such as “reported,” “according to,” and “available public data.” It does not provide medical advice, and official health authorities remain authoritative for public-health decisions.
Update cadence
The site is checked by an automated monitoring workflow. Updates are made when there is meaningful public-health signal, a source discrepancy, or a site-quality issue. Routine source reconfirmations may not change public-facing content.