Nipah Scare In Kerala As Alarm Sounded Over Two 'Unnatural Fever Deaths'
An alert has been issued in Kerala's Kozhikode district after two "unnatural" deaths were reported from suspected Nipah virus infection.
The first death was reported on August 30, and the patient was admitted to the hospital with a high fever.
Suspected Nipah infection claims two lives?
The second victim was a man who accompanied his ill father to the hospital where the first patient was undergoing treatment for fever.
Only after two children of the first victim and another relative sought treatment with similar symptoms did authorities suspect something was wrong.
By this time, the last rites of the deceased were performed without following the safety protocol.
While the condition of the relative is said to be stable, one of the two children is critical and is on ventilator support.?
Samples sent to NIV Pune
After doctors raised suspicion that the deaths could be due to Nipah infection, the samples of the second victim and those currently admitted in the hospital have been sent to the National Institute of Virology, Pune.
Following the two deaths, Kerala Health Minister Veena George held a high-level meeting and reviewed the situation on Monday.
2018 Nipah outbreak in Kerala
It should be noted that Kozhikode district has a history of Nipah virus outbreaks.
The first confirmed Nipah infection in south India and the third such outbreak in India was reported from Kozhikode and neighbouring Malappuram district in 2018.
On 19 May 2018, a Nipah virus disease outbreak was reported from Kozhikode, and by June, it had resulted in 17 deaths and 18 confirmed cases in the two districts.
Long before the world heard about the lockdown, Kerala had implemented such measures to prevent the spread of the highly contagious and deadly infection.
Two more Nipaha cases were reported in the state in 2019 and 2021.
Fruit bats suspected of spreading Nipah
It is suspected that fruit bats, found?in plenty, are the carriers of the Nipah virus in Kerala. According to the Kerala Health minister, it is currently the breeding season of fruit bats, and the chances of them spreading the virus now are higher.
How Nipah virus spreads
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Nipah virus infection is a zoonotic illness that is transmitted to people from animals and can also be transmitted through contaminated food or directly from person to person.
It causes a range of illnesses among infected people, from asymptomatic (subclinical) infection to acute respiratory illness and fatal encephalitis.
The virus can also cause severe disease in animals such as pigs, resulting in significant economic losses for farmers, WHO said.
No treatment or vaccine against Nipah
What makes Nipah deadly is that it has no medication or vaccine, and the only treatment available is to manage the symptoms.
Since Nipah is extremely rare and its symptoms can be mistaken for viral fever, the identification of it can be delayed, thus losing valuable time.
Nipah virus has a mortality rate of anywhere between 70-90 per cent.
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