India Reports No New Nipah Cases: WHO Confirms End to Recent Outbreak
The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed that no new cases of the Nipah virus have been reported in India since September 15. Earlier in September, an outbreak in the Kozhikode district of Kerala resulted in six laboratory-confirmed cases and two fatalities. The Nipah virus, with a fatality rate ranging from 40 to 75 percent, has no vaccine. The affected individuals, except the first case with an unknown source of infection, were family and hospital contacts of the initial patient.
Currently, 1,288 contacts, including high-risk individuals and healthcare workers, are being monitored for 21 days. Nipah spreads to humans through contact with infected animals like bats and pigs, and occasionally from infected individuals. Symptoms include fever, vomiting, respiratory issues, and in severe cases, seizures and inflammation of the brain leading to a coma.
The virus was first identified in Malaysia in 1998 and this marks the sixth outbreak in India since 2001. In 2018, Kerala witnessed an outbreak that claimed 17 lives. The WHO considers Nipah a high-priority disease due to its epidemic potential and lack of sufficient countermeasures.
