The day after a 12-year-old boy succumbed to the Nipah virus in Kozhikode, Kerala Minister of Health Veena George confirmed that 11 other people, including the child’s mother, are showing symptoms of the virus infection.
Samples were taken from all eleven people suspected of being infected with the Nipah virus, and results of eight samples are expected by Monday evening, Veena George said.
An animal husbandry team visited the house and the premises of the 12-year-old with his family. Samples were taken from two goats owned by the family. Samples were also taken from two rambutan trees in their plot as bats may have bitten the fruit on the tree. The team also found a bat habitat on the other side of the lake from the house. A Bhopal NIV team will arrive here on Wednesday to collect samples.
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The country’s health department is closely monitoring the cases and is meticulously conducting contact tracing, the health minister said. Up to 251 contacts were identified, 54 of them in the high risk category.
The health department will begin house-to-house monitoring starting Tuesday to see if anyone has symptoms or has been banned from contact.
Earlier in the day, the Kerala government released a Nipah Management Plan that outlines the health protocol that must be followed by state and private hospitals. The district authorities can create a separate management plan for Nipah and inform that the treatment and discharge guidelines have also been published.
Veena George State Health Secretary has urged all district authorities to remain cautious and keep those affected by encephalitis under surveillance. Healthcare workers, field workers, doctors and other staff in private hospitals and others receive special training.
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WHAT IS NIPAH VIRUS?
Nipah is a zoonotic virus, which means that it spreads from animals to humans. The Nipah virus is transmitted from fruit bats (fruit bats) to animals and humans. In general, it affects animals such as pigs, dogs, horses, among others. If the Nipah virus is transmitted to humans, it can cause serious illness that can lead to death.
The World Health Organization says the Nipah virus infects a number of animals and causes serious illness and death in humans, making it a public health concern. The Nipah virus can be transmitted through “contaminated food or directly between people”.
“In infected people, it causes a range of diseases, from asymptomatic (subclinical) infections to acute respiratory diseases and fatal encephalitis,” says the WHO in its guidelines on the Nipah virus.
(With PTI inputs)
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