Nipah virus: Kerala reports another case from Kozhikode

Kerala health minister Veena George earlier said that there were chances that the 12-year-old boy who succumbed to Nipah could have come in contact with a larger number of people.

Kerala recorded another case of Nipah virus on Monday in Kozhikode, news agency ANI reported citing Kozhikode district collector GS Sameeran. Earlier on Sunday, the state reported that two healthcare workers showed symptoms of the virus and a 12-year-old boy died due to Nipah.

A central team of experts visits the homes at Chathamangalam where one Nipah victim died, in Kozhikode.  (ANI Photo)

Kerala health minister Veena George earlier said that there were chances that the 12-year-old boy who succumbed to Nipah could have come in contact with a larger number of people. She also said that samples of 7 high-risk contacts were sent to the Pune’s National Institute of Virology for testing.

“The most important job is to strengthen contact tracing. We are giving special training to our field workers. It is equally important to find the source of infection. Whether this child is the first to get infected or from where this child was infected,” George was quoted as saying by news agency PTI. She further added that 188 contacts were traced on Sunday and said that there are possibilities that there can be more contacts.

Kerala, earlier in 2018, witnessed an outbreak of the Nipah virus due to which 17 people died. Nipah is a zoonotic disease and fruit bats are considered as main vectors. Bat-bitten fruits often spread the disease when consumed by humans. Humans further spread the disease through bodily fluids.

If infected a person will experience fever, headache and vomiting along with muscular pain, dizziness, and nausea Some patients may also have signs similar to people suffering from epilepsy. If the disease remains untreated it could trigger brain fever leading to fatalities. The case fatality rate of Nipah virus is 40-80%. The incubation period of Nipah is two weeks.