The Los Angeles Post
U.S. World Business Lifestyle
Today: April 14, 2025
Today: April 14, 2025

Nipah virus death puts health officials on alert in southern India

July 22, 2024

Kochi, India โ€” Authorities in southern Indiaโ€™s Kerala state are taking preventive steps after the death of a 14-year-old boy from the Nipah virus and the identification of 60 people in the high-risk category, the stateโ€™s health minister said on Sunday.

Parts of Kerala are among those most at risk globally for outbreaks of the virus, a Reuters investigation showed last year. Nipah, which comes from fruit bats and animals such as pigs, can cause a lethal, brain-swelling fever in humans.

Nipah is classified as a priority pathogen by the World Health Organization (WHO) because of its potential to trigger an epidemic. There is no vaccine to prevent infection and no treatment to cure it.

โ€œThe infected boy died on Sunday after a cardiac arrest,โ€ Veena George, the state health minister told local TV reporters, speaking in the Malayalam language.

Earlier, in a statement on Saturday, she said as part of Nipah control, the government has issued orders to set up 25 committees to identify and isolate affected people.

Dr. Anoop Kumar, director of critical care medicine at Aster MIMS Hospital in Calicut, said one positive case of Nipah had been diagnosed in a school boy and people who had been in contact with him were being watched.

โ€œThere is a minimum chance of an outbreak of Nipah virus at this stage,โ€ he said, adding that the situation would be monitored for the next seven to 10 days.

There are 214 people on the primary contact list of the boy, the statement said. Among them, 60 are in the high-risk category, it said, and isolation wards have been set up at health institutions to treat patients.

Family members of the affected patient were kept at a local hospital for observation, after a case of Nipah virus was confirmed in Malappuram, a town about 350 kilometers (about 220 miles) from Keralaโ€™s capital Thiruvananthapuram, local media reports said. Other people who might be at risk were asked to isolate at home.

The state government said it is working to trace any affected people to contain the spread of the virus. Nipah has been linked to the deaths of dozens of people in Kerala since its first appearance in the state in 2018.

The virus was first identified 25 years ago in Malaysia and has led to outbreaks in Bangladesh, India and Singapore.

The-CNN-Wire
โ„ข & ยฉ 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

Related Articles

Hopes of finding survivors fade in India's Kerala after landslides kill 167 India searches for survivors after landslides kill more than 150 in Kerala Landslides caused by heavy rains kill 93 and bury many others in southern India One dead from Nipah virus in India's Kerala state, state health minister says on local TV
Share This

Popular

Economy|Food|Health|Political|World

Dissident pushes for change in Cuba, one ladle at a time

Dissident pushes for change in Cuba, one ladle at a time
Business|Economy|Europe|Health|Political|Science|Stock Markets|Technology|US

Trump health policy uncertainty sends biotech sector into deeper slump

Trump health policy uncertainty sends biotech sector into deeper slump
Crime|Education|Health|Political|US

Tufts University student details poor conditions in ICE detention ahead of Monday hearing

Tufts University student details poor conditions in ICE detention ahead of Monday hearing
Health|Science

Yawning may be more dangerous than you think, experts say

Yawning may be more dangerous than you think, experts say

Health

Health|MidEast|Political|World

Israel intensifies strikes across Gaza on Palm Sunday and hits a hospital in the north

Israel intensifies strikes across Gaza on Palm Sunday and hits a hospital in the north
Health|MidEast|Political|World

Israeli strike leaves Gaza Cityโ€™s last fully functioning hospital out of service as offensive escalates

Israeli strike leaves Gaza Cityโ€™s last fully functioning hospital out of service as offensive escalates
Americas|Election|Health|Political|World

Brazil's Bolsonaro recovering after 12-hour surgery

Brazil's Bolsonaro recovering after 12-hour surgery
Health|Political|US

Trump is 'fully fit' to serve as commander in chief, his doctor says after recent physical

Trump is 'fully fit' to serve as commander in chief, his doctor says after recent physical

Access this article for free.

Already have an account? Sign In