No ‘specific treatment’ for Nipah virus: Aiims doctor says amid Kerala outbreak

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Nipah Virus is a respiratory illness that is also known to cause fever, muscular pain, dizziness and nausea.

There is no specific treatment for the Nipah Virus, a doctor of All India Institute of Medical Science (Aiims) informed on Monday amid an outbreak in the southern state of Kerala, news agency ANI reported. "Fruit bats live in a specific geographical territory. If they fly to other places, naturally this virus can be transmitted," Dr Ashutosh Biswas, a professor at the department of medicine at Aiims said.

Health workers bury the body of the 12-year-old Nipah virus victim, at Kannamparambu cemetery in Kozhikode on Sunday. (PTI) (HT_PRINT)

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Nipah Virus is a respiratory illness that is also known to cause fever, muscular pain, dizziness and nausea. In case the disease aggravates, it can lead to a patient becoming unconscious and contract brain fever, which could be fatal.

The virus spreads through the saliva of fruit bats and Bat-bitten fruits are considered to be a major spreader of the disease among humans. The disease can further transmit to other humans through body fluids.

The fatality rate of the Nipah virus is 40-80% while its incubation period is two weeks.

On Sunday, a 12-year-old boy succumbed to the infection in a first such incident three years after it wreaked havoc in parts of Kozhikode and Malappuram districts of Kerala.

Following the child's death, the Centre rushed a team of experts to provide technical support to the southern state. The team also visited the child’s house and collected samples of Rambutan fruits from the vicinity to identify the source of the infection.

Meanwhile, the Centre advised locals to follow immediate public health measures including contact tracing for any affected persons in the past 12 days after the infection is diagnosed. The Centre has also called for a strict quarantine of the contacts and isolation of any suspects. It had also asked to actively collect samples and transport them for lab testing for further research.

(With agency inputs)