Two viruses, one state. Kerala is battling two different infections: a surge in coronavirus cases and the current Nipah virus outbreak.
As similar as they may appear in nature, both viruses are very different in their own way.
NIPAH IS A ZOONOTIC INFECTION, COVID? WE DO NOT KNOW
The Nipah virus is conclusively transmitted as a zoonotic infection (an infectious disease that is transmitted between species, from animals to humans or vice versa). The virus was isolated and identified in 1999. The disease is named after a village in Malaysia, Sungai Nipah.
The host for this infection can be a pig, a flying fox, dogs, goats, cats, horses and possibly also sheep. The virus is thought to be naturally sustained by “fruit bats” (a type of fruit bat) that show no signs of infection.
On the other hand, the origins of SARS COV-2 are still unknown even twenty months after the first case was diagnosed in Wuhan, China. It was originally thought to have come from a wet market in Wuhan called the Wuhan Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market, but that theory has yet to be established.
The debate over whether it was a “Made-in-a-lab” or a “Made-in-China” virus is still raging.
NIPAH HAS NO HEALING, NOR COVID
Both infections have no antidote to treatment. No antiviral drug has yet been made. “There are currently no approved treatments for Nipah virus (NiV) infection. Treatment is limited to supportive care, including rest, hydration, and treating symptoms as they occur, ”said the Center for Disease Control.
The CDC added that “there are immunotherapeutic treatments (monoclonal antibody therapies) that are currently being developed and evaluated for the treatment of NiV infections”.
However, India is exploring “the use of monoclonal antibodies for treatment purposes,” said a letter from the Union’s Minister of Health, Rajesh Bhushan, to the state.
A research study by the Coalition of Epidemic Preparedness Innovation (CEPI) tested several antiviral drugs but found that only one had “good therapeutic efficacy in non-human primates.”
With regard to the coronavirus, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the antiviral drug Remdesivir for the treatment of Covid-19 in October 2020. But this is a reused drug, and to date no antiviral drug has been licensed to treat the virus. Other reused medicines, including tocilizumab, are used. Reusing FDA-approved drugs is a strategy to identify quickly deployable treatments for COVID-19.
The World Health Organization does not recommend self-medication, including antibiotics, to prevent or cure Covid-19.
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NIPAH LETHAL, LESS INFECTIVE, COVID ONLY AGAINST
Based on an assessment by the Global Virus Network, the R0 (R zero) of the Nipah virus is estimated at 0.43.
R0 is a mathematical term that quantifies the average number of new infections an infected person can generate in an otherwise naive population. For an infection to spread through a population, R0 must be greater than 1 (> 1). If R0 is less than 1 (
The death rate is 45 to 70 percent and is based on estimates of the previous Nipah virus outbreak in Kerala, which killed 17 of the 19 infected patients.
On the other hand, the R0 of Covid fluctuates strongly and was several times above the 1 percent mark in India and outside. This explains its high portability.
Most people infected with the virus develop mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without special treatment.
Data suggests that the death rate from Covid averages below 1 percent.
WHERE IS VACCINE?
Nipah was first identified in 1999, but there are currently no drugs or vaccines specifically designed to target infection with the Nipah virus. WHO has identified Nipah as a priority disease for the WHO Research and Development Blueprint.
Since outbreaks have been contained and localized, the Nipah virus, unlike the coronavirus, has not received global attention.
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THE GLOBAL THREAT
Nipah virus outbreaks have occurred in Malaysia, Singapore, Bangladesh and India. The virus has also been found to affect bats in countries such as Cambodia, Indonesia, Madagascar, Thailand and Timor-Leste.
By comparison, up to 221 countries and territories around the world have reported a total of 221,721,579 confirmed coronavirus cases, which were first discovered in Wuhan, China.
SYMPTOMS
The coronavirus affects different people in different ways, with the most common symptoms being fever, dry cough, fatigue, pain, loss of smell, etc.
The WHO says: “For Covid-19, the data so far indicate that 80 percent of infections are mild or asymptomatic, 15 percent are severe infections that require oxygen, and 5 percent are critical infections that require ventilation. These fractions of severe and critical infections “infection would be higher than influenza infection.”
On the other hand, Nipah virus infection in humans causes a range of clinical symptoms, from asymptomatic infections (subclinical) to acute respiratory infections and fatal encephalitis, according to the WHO.
Infected people initially develop a fever, headache, myalgia (muscle pain), vomiting, and a sore throat. This may be followed by dizziness, drowsiness, impaired consciousness, and neurological symptoms that suggest acute encephalitis. Some people may also experience atypical pneumonia and severe breathing problems, including acute shortness of breath. In severe cases, encephalitis and seizures occur, which turn into a coma within 24 to 48 hours.
DETECTION VIA RT-PCR
The swab and throat test (RT-PCR) is used to diagnose the Covid and Nipah viruses.
The most preferred and extremely sensitive diagnostic method is PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction). Although expensive, real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is widely used for the detection and diagnosis of NiV because of its extreme sensitivity. The sensitivity of these techniques can be compromised when the viral genome experiences rapid mutations.
CONTACT TRACE, INSULATION FOR BOTH
The golden rules of Track, Test, Treat apply to both infections.
In 2018, WHO commended Kerala for responding to the outbreak, saying it “shows how effective, strong and connected health systems, in close collaboration with the animal health and wildlife sectors, are critical to preparedness and rapid response.”
ALSO SEE: Explained: Everything You Need To Know About Nipah Virus
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