Kerala sounds Nipah alert after cases in Palakkad and Malappuram

Indian Express

9 hours ago

The Kerala Health Department Friday sounded an alert against the Nipah virus after two suspected cases of the deadly zoonotic disease were detected in two districts.
Health Minister Veena George said the alert has been sounded in Kozhikode, Malappuram and Palakkad in connection with cases reported from Palakkad and Malappuram districts.
'Virus was detected in tests conducted at the government medical college in Kozhikode. Samples were despatched to NIV-Pune for final confirmation as per the protocol. However, containment measures have been initiated and 26 committees each have been formed in these three districts. Containment zones will be finalized in these districts by collectors,'' she said.
One suspected case was reported from Kozhikode medical college, where an 18-year-old woman from Mankada in Malappuram district died on July 1 following brain haemorrhage. Doctors and other staff at the medical college who treated the woman have been quarantined. The second case was reported at Nattukal in Palakkad, where a 38-year-old woman is undergoing treatment at a private hospital at Perinthalmanna in Palakkad. The source of infection is yet to be ascertained in both cases.
In May this year, a 42-year-old woman in Malappuram district was tested positive for Nipah, a deadly zoonotic virus. The woman, who was admitted with symptoms of encephaliti, was later cured of the disease.
Kerala has had five Nipah outbreaks since 2018. Till now, only seven positive patients, including the woman in May, have survived. In 2018, 17 out of 18 infected persons and one in 2021 had died. In 2023, two Nipah deaths were reported. Last year, Malappuram had reported two deaths — one in July and the second in September – taking the total in Kerala since 2018 to 22.
Fruit bats are known as the reservoir of the deadly virus and all the outbreaks in Kerala had been reported during May to September, mainly the rainy season in the state. During the rainy season viral fever and influenza are common, which makes early diagnosis of Nipah difficult.
A study on the 2018 outbreak had found that the index case was infected from bats, while others from hospital. The virus reported in Kerala belonged to a Bangladeshi strain, which is known for a mortality rate — even up to 90 per cent.
A field survey conducted by the National Institute of Virology (NIV) and the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD) after the Nipah death in July last year indicated fruit bats as the source of infection. The presence of antibodies of the virus was detected in fruit bats collected from Pandikkad village, where the July victim lived.
The minor boy had consumed hog plum fruit from his neighbourhood, where fruit bats were known to be present.
An analysis of earlier incidents of the infection had shown that the strain of the virus found in the affected persons in Kerala was similar to the strain found in the body of the fruit bats.
In the previous incidents of Nipah too, the infection was reported from places where there was presence of fruit bats. In 2018 and 2023, the cases were reported in the eastern hilly region of Kozhikode.