New Delhi: A Nipah virus case has been confirmed in Kerala’s Mallapuram district, with the 14-year-old patient succumbing to the illness. The Union government has issued an advisory in response to this alarming development.
The teenager, a boy from Mallapuram, exhibited Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) symptoms and was admitted to a local healthcare facility before being transferred to a bigger health facility in Kozhikode.
However, the patient later succumbed to the disease.
“The samples were sent to NIV, Pune, which confirmed a Nipah virus infection,” the Union Health Ministry said in a statement.
The Center has strongly recommended that state governments conduct active searches for cases in surrounding areas, the family of the confirmed case, and places with similar geography. This caution is crucial to prevent the spread of the Nipah virus.
The Central government has taken proactive measures in response to the Nipah virus case. They have ordered strict quarantine for the contacts involved, isolation of any suspicions, and active tracing of connections over the past 12 days. This is to ensure the safety of the public.
A multi-member joint outbreak response team from the National ‘One Health Mission’ of the Union Health Ministry will be sent to Kerala to help with case investigation, epidemiological connection identification, and technical support.
The Indian Council of Medical Research, in a show of support, delivered monoclonal antibodies for patient care at the State’s request, and the ministry was notified that a mobile BSL-3 laboratory had arrived in Kozhikode to screen more samples from contacts.
Nipah Virus Disease (NiVD) outbreaks have been documented in Kerala in the past, and the government has successfully managed them; the most recent one took place in the Kozhikode region in 2023.
The typical viral reservoir is fruit bats.
–IANS
