Kerala health department is on high alert in the wake of deaths due to the 'Nipah' virus (NiV). The government has set up a task force to monitor the cases and contain the spread of this fast spreading virus which has a reported mortality rate of 70 per cent. Here’s how NiV spreads, the symptoms and treatment.
Samples from the deceased were collected and sent to virology lab at the Kasturba Medical College, Manipal and National Virology Institute in Pune. The results have now confirmed the presence of Nipah virus in the samples.
According to reports , 25 people are being kept under observation. Nine persons are undergoing treatment for the disease and remain critical. Six persons are being treated at the Medical College Hospital in Kozhikode, one at a private hospital in Kozhikode and one at Kochi.
Reports say Union Minister J P Nadda directed the Director of National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to visit Kozhikode district to assist the state government.
"Reviewed the situation of deaths related to Nipah virus in Kerala with Secretary Health. I have directed Director NCDC to visit the district and initiate required steps as warranted by the protocol for the disease in consultation with state government," J P Nadda said in a tweet.
Nipah virus transmits from animals to humans and fruit bats of the Pteropodidae family are the natural hosts of the virus.
Nipah virus (NiV) infection is a newly emerging zoonosis that causes severe disease in both animals and humans. The natural host of the virus are fruit bats of the Pteropodidae Family, Pteropus genus.
NiV was first identified during an outbreak of disease that took place in Kampung Sungai Nipah, Malaysia in 1998. On this occasion, pigs were the intermediate hosts. However, in subsequent NiV outbreaks, there were no intermediate hosts. In Bangladesh in 2004, humans became infected with NiV as a result of consuming date palm sap that had been contaminated by infected fruit bats. Human-to-human transmission has also been documented, including in a hospital setting in India.
NiV infection in humans has a range of clinical presentations, from asymptomatic infection to acute respiratory syndrome and fatal encephalitis. NiV is also capable of causing disease in pigs and other domestic animals. There is no vaccine for either humans or animals. The primary treatment for human cases is intensive supportive care.
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