Centre confirms two Nipah virus deaths in Kerala, dispatches experts’ team to assist state govt

Earlier, the Department of Health had sounded an alert in the district following the two deaths.

Samples from the deceased individuals and from those under treatment with symptoms similar to that of Nipah virus infection were sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune for final testing and confirmation. Health Minister Veena George, who reached Kozhikode on Tuesday morning for a high-level meeting to review the situation, had told the media that lab results of the samples would be available by evening.

Contacts of the two deceased individuals who died due to fever (encephalitis) have been identified and they have been placed under surveillance. Those in the high-risk category would be given special attention. If Nipah is confirmed, there would be restrictions on social gatherings and events in the areas where the infection was detected, the minister said.

Health department officials said one of the patients died on August 30 and the other one on September 11 at the same hospital in Kozhikode. Four people, who are the relatives of the victims, are under treatment with the same symptoms that the deceased had exhibited. The condition of one of them is critical.

Minister Veena George said the patient who died on September 11 had come in contact with the person who succumbed on August 30. They were together at the hospital for nearly an hour.

The areas under surveillance are Ayancheri and Maruthonkara village panchayats in the eastern region of Kozhikode district where the health and panchayat departments have already stepped up surveillance and preventive measures. Both villages are situated less than 15 km away from Changaroth panchayat, where the Nipah outbreak was reported in 2018. This region has tracts of thick vegetation and forests nearby. In 2021, one case was reported at Chathamangalam, 50 km away from Changaroth.

The health and panchayat departments have already stepped up surveillance and preventive measures in two village panchayats in the district.

Kerala had reported a Nipah outbreak during May-June 2018 when 18 confirmed cases were recorded in Kozhikode district. As many as 17 of the infected people had died, including the index case which could not be confirmed by laboratory tests.

In 2019, one case was reported in Ernakulam district, but there was no casualty. In September 2021, the deadly virus surfaced again in Kozhikode, killing a 12-year-old boy. In both instances, further infection could be averted because of the lessons learned from the 2018 outbreak in Kozhikode.

In 2021, NIV-Pune had found Nipah virus antibodies in samples collected from two fruit bat varieties in Kozhikode district. It is widely accepted that these mammals are the source of the virus and the finding reinforces this. Infected fruit bats can spread the disease to other animals as well, such as pigs, dogs, cats, goats, horses and sheep. Normally, fruit bats – identified as the animal host reservoir for the virus – breed in the months of May and June.

Nipah virus infection can cause a mild to severe disease, which in the latter situation sees a major swelling in the brain (encephalitis), and can lead to death.

Symptoms of the infection can appear at any time from four days to two weeks after exposure to the virus. Patients usually report a fever and headache that can last from three days to a couple of weeks, accompanied by symptoms of respiratory illness such as cough, sore throat, and difficulty in breathing.

If the disease progresses to encephalitis, the patient may experience drowsiness, disorientation, and mental confusion, which can then progress very quickly to a coma within 1-2 days.

Between 40 per cent and 75 per cent of the cases can lead to death, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). However, the fatality rate in the 2018 outbreak in Kozhikode was well over 90 per cent.