Nipah in Kerala: 1 more person tests positive, containment efforts ramped up in Kozhikode district

While two of the six people who tested positive for Nipah have died in Kerala, three others are undergoing treatment. Restrictions have been placed in nine panchayats in Kozhikode district.

By: Express News Service
Thiruvananthapuram | September 15, 2023 09:37 AM IST

2 min read

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One more person in Kerala tested positive for Nipah virus on Friday, taking the total confirmed cases to six. The 39-year-old, who tested positive, had received treatment at the same Kozhikode private hospital that the other patients who tested positive had been to, an official communication from the office of the health minister said.

The latest person to test positive for the deadly virus has been under observation in a hospital in Kozhikode. On Thursday, 11 samples collected from those in the contact list of other confirmed cases had tested negative. Two people have died and three other confirmed cases, including the one reported positive on Friday, are undergoing treatment. The two previous confirmed cases were relatives of the person who died on August 30, believed to be the index case.

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Meanwhile, the state government has stepped up containment activities in Kozhikode district, where restrictions are in force in nine panchayats. Educational institutions in the district will remain closed until Saturday and all gatherings and functions have been banned till September 24.

ALSO READ | As Kerala grapples with Nipah virus, a look back at all six outbreaks since 2001

On Thursday, the number of people under observation had risen to 950 as health workers are still tracking down more persons in the contact list of the confirmed cases. Of these, 231 are in the high-risk category and 21 have been admitted to hospitals. To meet any eventuality, the government has readied 75 isolation rooms, six ICUs and four ventilators at the Medical College Hospital in Kozhikode.

NIV-Pune has brought a mobile lab, which has a bio-safety level-3 facility, to Kozhikode to speed up the testing of samples. A six-member team from the National Centre for Disease Control in Delhi has reached Kozhikode to review the situation. The team will visit the two epicentres of the outbreak, Ayancheri and Maruthonkara panchayats, as part of their investigation.

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