Nipah Alert: ICMR Confirms Deadly Virus In Fruit Bats In Kerala's Wayanad District

Nipah Virus Infection:  The scientists from Indian Council of Medical Research have found the presence of the deadly Nipah virus in the bodies of fruit bats found in Kerala's Wayanad district. According to the state's Health Minister Veena George, the samples collected from Sulthan Bathery and Manathavady in the district by ICMR have tested positive for the virus.

"The need of the hour is that alert health professionals should leave nothing to chance when they engage in the routine work of examining patients. There should be a cautious approach," she said in an interaction with the media.

Notably, ICMR is carrying out a statewide study to find out the region of frequent Nipah outbreaks in the state. The development came as the neighbouring Kozhikode district is looking to be officially Nipah infection-free on Thursday owing to the completion of the 42-day incubation period of the virus.

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Health Minister also said that the death rate of Nipah was considered to be 70 to 90 per cent, however, in Kerala the death rate was only 33.33 per cent.

"The spread of the infection could also be contained. These were possible owing to early detection of the infection and timely interventions. A research centre for Nipah would start functioning at Kozhikode Medical College from Thursday," said the minister.

Notably, in the second week of September, health authorities in Kozhikode raised concerns about a potential virus outbreak when two patients, displaying symptoms indicative of Nipah, passed away. Kozhikode saw two fatalities related to Nipah and confirmed six positive cases. Subsequently, more than a thousand samples were sent for testing.

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What is Nipah disease: (From an earlier report)
Derived from a Malaysian village called Sungai Nipah, this is a zoonotic disease passed from animals to humans. It can also spread through infected food, direct interaction with the infected, or contact with fruit bats. Common symptoms of Nipah are fever, headache, cough, difficulty breathing, and nausea. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the virus proves fatal for both humans and animals, also leading to severe illness in animals like pigs.