According to government officials, the Indian state of Kerala is racing to contain a fresh outbreak of the deadly Nipah virus, which has killed two individuals and infected at least five more.
Schools have been closed in the affected Kozhikode district, numerous villages have been declared containment zones, and 950 contacts have been discovered, 213 of them are considered “high risk.” Kerala Health Minister Veena George verified the fifth infected person on Wednesday, a 24-year-old health care worker. According to government media, a 9-year-old afflicted child is still on ventilator.
Pinarayi Vijayan, Kerala’s chief minister, issued a post on social media urging citizens not to panic but to “face this situation with caution” and “fully cooperate with the restrictions” imposed to manage the disease. Since 2018, Kerala has had four outbreaks of Nipah, the most recent of which occurred in 2021, while the state was simultaneously dealing with a surge of covid-19 infections.
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The World Health Organisation believes that the Nipah virus has a death rate of 40 to 75 percent and has designated it as a priority disease due to its epidemic potential. According to Indian media, the strain discovered in Kerala, known as the Bangladesh strain, has a high fatality rate but is less infectious.
What is Nipah virus and how does it spread?
Nipah virus (NiV) was found in 1999 after an outbreak among Malaysian pig breeders. The workers are believed to have caught the virus from sick livestock and their secretions.
According to the WHO, fruit bats, often known as “flying foxes,” are the Nipah virus’s natural host. The virus can be passed from animal to human, most notably via bats or pigs, or through human-to-human contact.
Fruit bats (Pteropodidae family) frequently reside on date palms near marketplaces, and the virus has passed from bats to humans via food items contaminated by infected bats, such as fruit and raw date palm juice.
Domestic animals, such as horses, cats, and dogs, can also get and spread the infection, but the virus is especially contagious among pigs, which can transmit the virus to humans who come into touch with their bodily fluids or tissue.
The lethal infection can also be transferred through close human contact; the virus can spread from an infected person to their relatives or carers via bodily fluids.
In 2018, India was dealing with an outbreak in Kerala that claimed the lives of 21 of the 23 people afflicted. A new case was reported in the country in 2019, but prompt response and comprehensive contact tracing prevented it from spreading further. According to Indian media, a 12-year-old child in Kerala died in September 2021 after getting the virus and exhibiting indications of brain swelling and heart inflammation.
What are the symptoms of Nipah virus?
The disease’s symptoms are diverse. Milder symptoms include fever and headaches, as well as vomiting, a sore throat, and muscle aches.
In severe circumstances, patients may develop acute infections such as encephalitis (brain inflammation) and respiratory problems. Seizures have also been described as a side effect, which can lead to personality changes or a coma.
How widespread is Nipah virus?
In the decades since its discovery, outbreaks have been documented in a number of Southeast Asian nations, including Singapore, Bangladesh, and India.
According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, new cases of the Nipah virus have been reported “almost annually” in several parts of Asia.
Why is Kerala particularly vulnerable?
Kerala is a tropical state of 35 million people on India’s southwest coast that has experienced deforestation and fast urbanisation, resulting in conditions in which people and wildlife – such as bats that can carry the virus – come into closer contact. According to a Reuters report released in May, Kerala is particularly prone to disease transmission from bats to humans. According to the inquiry, it is home to more than 40 species of bats and “prime bat habitat” that has been gradually cleared for human development.
